Patriots vs Broncos for the AFC Championship: What You Need to Know

By DANIEL LIBON (Patch Staff)

FOXBOROUGH, MA - The New England Patriots will play for their ninth AFC championship Sunday afternoon when they face the Denver Broncos Sunday afternoon at Sports Authority Field at Mile High.

The Patriots will play in their fifth consecutive AFC Championship Game, with only the 1973-77 Oakland Raiders matching the feat.

The main storyline on the field will be the Tom Brady - Peyton Manning showdown, the 17th between the two quarterbacks. In the playoffs, Brady and Manning have split their four games against each other, with Manning holding a 2-1 record against the Patriots in the AFC Championship.

Overall, Brady holds an 11-5 record against the Manning-led Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos.

A win by New England would put the team in a three-way tie with Dallas and Pittsburgh for the most Super Bowl appearances.

To help you get ready for the game, here is what you need to know;

BROADCAST INFORMATION

KICKOFF TIME: 3:05 p.m.

TELEVISION: This week’s game will be broadcast by CBS and can be seen locally on WBZ-TV Channel 4 in Boston. Jim Nantz will handle play-by-play duties with Phil Simms as the color analyst. Tracy Wolfson and Evan Washburn will work the sidelines.

LOCAL RADIO: 98.5 FM, The Sports Hub, is the flagship station for the Patriots Radio Network. Play-by-play broadcaster Bob Socci will call the action along with former Patriots quarterback Scott Zolak, who will provide color analysis.

NATIONAL RADIO: 93.7 FM, WEEI, will broadcast the national feed from Westwood One. Kevin Harlan will call the game alongside Dan Fouts and Boomer Esiason with Mark Malone providing sideline analysis.

WHAT DO THE EXPERTS SAY?

ESPN Commentators - Experts at the sports network are overwhelmingly picking the Patriots, with only Seth Wickersham and Tom Jackson choosing the Broncos.

FOX Sports Commentators - The Patriots were picked 4-3 over the Broncos to win.

Mike Reiss, ESPN Boston - The Patriots’ beat writer says they might need overtime, but the Patriots will defeat the Broncos 20-17.

Mike Florio, ProFootballTalk - The post-#DeflateGate quest to Super Bowl XL continues after Sunday with a 27-23 win by the Patriots

Michael David Smith, ProFootballTalk - Belichick dares Manning to go deep with the long ball he no longer has, resulting in a 27-17 Patriots win.

Elliot Harrison, NFL.com - The Patriots offense combined with the Patriots run defense stopping C.J. Anderson and Ronnie Hillman leads to a 24-20 win.

Patriots Football Weekly - No surprise here, the official newspaper of the New England Patriots are predicting a New England win. Andy Hart’s prediction includes a 27-13 win for the Pats.

Pete Prisco, CBS Sports - New England moves the ball, but a late turnover results in a 23-31 win by the Broncos.

THE PATCH PERSPECTIVE

Tom Brady has his weapons back and as everyone saw against Kansas City, that can make all the difference. On offense, Julian Edelman is going to have to find a way to win his matchup against Aqib Talib, but that may not matter when you have Rob Gronkowski in the open field. Expect the Patriots to sling short passes for big gains as they have all season long.

While nowhere near his past level of play, Peyton Manning is still Peyton Manning and the Patriots need to remember that. If the Patriots can contain the running attack of Ronnie Hillman and C.J. Anderson while forcing poor decisions from Manning, it’s a 24-21 win for Patriots and a shot at a fifth Super Bowl Title.

Information in this article was provided by Patriots Media Relations. Photo courtesy of Patriots.