The 2013 NFL playoff picks are going to be difficult to make, and in this one, the Baltimore Ravens and the New England Patriots are set to do battle with one another. Check out our Ravens vs. Patriots predictions and the keys to the AFC Championship Game for Baltimore vs. New England.

Click Here For 2013 NFL Playoff Bracket & all of our NFL Playoff Game Previews

#4 Baltimore Ravens @ #2 New England Patriots
Ravens vs. Patriots Location: Gillette Stadium, Foxboro, MA
Ravens vs. Patriots Date/Time: Sunday, January 20th, 6:00 p.m. (ET)
Ravens vs. Patriots On TV: CBS

Key #1: The Ravens need to figure out how to keep from being on the field for 80+ snaps
There are only so many snaps that a defense can be on the field for. The Baltimore defense has been on the field for exactly 87 plays over the course of the last two weeks against the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos. The team only allowed three field goals against the Colts, and though there were 35 points allowed to the Broncos, 14 of those points were allowed on special teams. Conceding 21 points in over five quarters on the road to the No. 1 team in the AFC is nothing to be ashamed of. Though emotion has gotten this team thus far, and LB Ray Lewis has been tremendous in his farewell tour, there is still only so much that can be asked of for a team that allowed 350.8 yards and 21.5 points per game this year. QB Tom Brady is the master of running play after play and taking advantage of a tired defense. He did it all last week against the Houston Texans, and he might be able to take advantage of that against the Ravens as well. New England ran 77 plays when these two teams met the first time. If it does that again, Baltimore is going to be in a heck of a lot of trouble. If the Ravens can get the job done on defense and keep control of the ball on the ground with RB Ray Rice, this could be a very interesting game.

Ravens @ Patriots Odds at Diamond Sportsbook
Baltimore Ravens +9
New England Patriots -9
Over/Under 51
Click Here to Bet Your Ravens vs. Patriots Picks!

Key #2: The Patriots have to get over all of their injuries
Brady might be healthy and ready to get back to the Super Bowl for the second straight year, but he doesn’t quite have the healthiest team in the world around him. TE Rob Gronkowski is out for the rest of the year with his second forearm injury of the campaign, and RB Danny Woodhead might be out of the lineup as well. Granted, last week, we saw RB Shane Vereen step up with three total touchdowns, and RB Stevan Ridley had himself a great game, too. Ridley only had 37 yards on 13 carries when these two teams met the first time around, and both Woodhead, RB Brandon Bolden, and WR Julian Edelman were the three offensive touchdown scorers. Bolden will likely have to suit if Woodhead sits, and Edelman’s season is said and done with. All of a sudden, there is a huge difference from entering last week’s game when the Pats were as healthy as they have been all season long, and now when they have a few vital injuries that could prove to be costly. Just about everyone is going to be on notice this week to get into the lineup for New England, and whomever it is that is out there is going to have to be at his best beat the Ravens.

Key #3: Joe Cool has to stay calm and continue to deliver the big time throws
QB Joe Flacco ended up with a raw deal last year. He is still looked upon as the man that is never going to take his team to a Lombardi Trophy, yet in the AFC Championship Game, he still played his heart out. On a day when RB Ray Rice and RB Ricky Williams combined for just 89 yards on 27 carries without a touchdown, and on a day where the weather was awful and the New England defense was swarming, Joe Cool threw for 306 yards and two TDs against one pick. What’s worse for Flacco is that he delivered the ball right on the money that would have won the game if it weren’t dropped by WR Lee Evans, and it’s anyone’s guess as to whether he would have won the game in overtime had K Billy Cundiff not missed that chip shot of a field goal attempt. Over the course of the last two weeks, Flacco has thrown for 613 yards and five TDs without tossing a pick, and the argument could be made that it is the best stretch of football that he has played in his entire career in the postseason. If that continues, the Ravens will have a shot at winning once again. If it doesn’t continue and Flacco resorts back into the quarterback that is largely known for blowing it when the games count the most, Baltimore has no chance.

Purchase Via Credit Card	Purchase By Paypal

And then there were four… There are only two games on the NFL schedule that are left before the Super Bowl, and here at Bankroll Sports, we’re taking a close look by doing our NFC Championship Preview and odds breakdown, and our AFC Championship Game preview and odds breakdown.

The first game on Sunday is the AFC Championship Game, pitting the Baltimore Ravens up against the New England Patriots. These two teams were the top two seeds in the conference, and save for a few weeks when the Houston Texans were in the fray, these were the top two teams in the AFC all season long.

Baltimore has taken the very, very tough road to reach this point, as it has had to play a number of tough games both at home and on the road this year. The Ravens are a perfect 7-0 in games against playoff teams this year, and they have to hope that they can keep that up when they go into Foxboro on Sunday.

The Patriots certainly have the talent to do some real damage though, and with the amount of just raw skill that they have out there on the field, they are deserving favorites. Sure, the schedule has been weak this year, and sure they don’t have a single win against a team that finished above .500 since last December, but the Pats can score on anyone. QB Tom Brady just torched the Denver Broncos for six TDs, and he is clearly the most talented and most playoff-experienced quarterback left in the bunch.

QB Joe Flacco has a history of winning playoff games on the road in big time spots, but it seems when push comes to shove, he just can’t get his team over the hump in the games like this one. The oddsmakers don’t have a lot of confidence that he can get the job done in this one, though. Baltimore is a 7.5 point underdog, while the ‘total’ is set at a rather lofty 50.5 in the AFC Championship Game.

**Click Here for the Best Sports Betting System in the World**

On the NFC Championship Game odds, we have two teams that hardly anyone saw coming. The New York Giants and the San Francisco 49ers were always considered good teams this year that were probably going to be in the playoffs, but in the end, no one really, truly thought that either was going to really have the goods to play in the Super Bowl.

The 49ers must admit that they caught a break when the Giants beat the Green Bay Packers. Not only do they probably end up getting the easier game, but they also avoid the trip into Lambeau Field and force the G-Men to travel across the country for their second trip to the Bay Area this season.

You aren’t going to find a hotter quarterback right now than QB Eli Manning, who has tossed six TDs in his two playoff games thus far in the postseason. The defense has gotten the job done for the Giants as well, as the pass rush has been all over the place against both the Falcons and the Packers. QBs Matt Ryan and Aaron Rodgers have to be thrilled that they aren’t going to be dealing with these pass rushers like DE Jason Pierre-Paul again this season.

That being said, the Niners are the hot commodity right now. No one believed that they could get the job done against QB Drew Brees and the mighty New Orleans Saints offense, and though they did allow 32 points and almost 500 yards of offense, they forced five turnovers and were largely the more aggressive of the two teams on both sides of the ball. They feel like they deserve to be here, and for the first time in his career, QB Alex Smith is getting the respect that he deserves after being a No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft all those years ago.

Smith has a chance to fulfill his destiny if he can just hold serve at home in this game. The Giants are up against it, as San Fran has now gone 8-1 SU and 8-0-1 ATS this year when playing by the Bay. The 49ers are favored by a field goal, while the ‘total’, which was set at the same 47 that this game landed on the first time these two teams met, has since dropped to 45.

2012 NFL Divisional Odds @ SportBet Sportsbook (as of 1/16/12):
(Get a HUGE 100% Bonus at SportBet.com When Using This Link)

AFC Championship Game Odds (1/22/12)
301 Baltimore Ravens +7
302 New England Patriots -7
Over/Under 50

NFC Championship Game Lines (1/22/12)
303 New York Giants +1
304 San Francisco 49ers -1
Over/Under 41.5

The Current NFL Week Divisional NFL Odds @ Bovada Sportsbook
(Get an UNLIMITED 20% Bonus at Bovada.lv When Using This Link)