NFC Championship 2020/2021 - Predictions & Odds

• The NFC Championship game is played between the two remaining playoff teams following the NFC postseason’s first two rounds, with the winner advancing to face the AFC champion in the Super Bowl.
• The winner of the NFC has won four of the last ten Super Bowls, the most recent being the Philadelphia Eagles, champions of LII.
• From the 1985 season through the 1997 season, the NFC champion won every single Super Bowl, thirteen of them in a row.
• Since Super Bowl LV will be hosted in Tampa Bay, the Buccaneers (led by GOAT Tom Brady) have a chance to play for the title in their hometown, and only two teams have ever done that, both from the NFC: the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XIX and the Los Angeles Rams in Super Bowl XIV.

Of course, nobody knows for sure which NFL team will win the NFC Championship in 2020/2021, but that does not mean the oddsmakers won’t take a stab at it, and for the most part, their predictions are no surprise at all.

Leading the pack is last years’ conference winner, the San Francisco 49ers, who look every bit as strong as they did throughout last regular and postseason, followed up by the always relevant (thanks to Drew Brees) New Orleans Saints and the newly capable Tampa Bay Buccaneers (thanks to Tom Brady).

Remember, these odds will change as the season draws near, so if you see something you like now, grab it while you can and ride those superior odds right to the finish because the 2020 / 2021 season already looks to be an interesting one (for SO many reasons), a year that could be dominated by quite a few of these NFC teams.

Odds taken from DraftKings Sportsbook, July 22.

Have no doubt, the San Francisco 49ers are talented enough to make a return visit to the Super Bowl, and the oddsmakers are giving them the best chance to do it.

The top three teams here – San Francisco 49ers, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers – have similar odds, and then there is a significant drop off after that.

Despite a new head coach in Dallas, the Cowboys still look decent for the NFC title, with the Philadelphia Eagles (once again) the only other real threat to them out of the NFC East.

Favorites to Win the NFC in 2020/2021

With a more powerful offensive line thanks to the addition of veteran free agent tackle Trent Williams, the San Francisco 49ers would love to finish what they started last season, hoping their second first-round draft pick, receiver Brandon Aiyuk, becomes another Deebo Samuel for them.

Old man Brees (aka Drew) is running out of seasons with the New Orleans Saints, the 41-year old veteran quarterback (and shoe-in for the Hall-of-Fame) needing to snag his second Super Bowl ring sooner rather than later, though the addition of deep threat receiver Emmanuel Sanders this offseason should help his cause immensely.

Speaking of helpful offseasons, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers increased the value of their postseason stock by signing GOAT quarterback Tom Brady to their roster, making all those claims that this team was “a quarterback away from greatness” entirely provable in 2020.

Underdogs to Win the NFC in 2020/2021

What’s not to love about these upgraded Dallas Cowboys – they still have the same great quarterback (Dak Prescott), running back (Ezekiel Elliott), and receiver (Amari Cooper), plus they have added a rookie superstar receiver, CeeDee Lamb, to the mix, all combined with a top-10 defense, and now run efficiently by a new but highly prepared head coach, Mike McCarthy.

Never leave out the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship conversation, though it will take quarterback Carson Wentz having a completely healthy season and postseason to get the job done, something he hasn’t been able to do since his 16-game playoff-free rookie year in 2016.

It’s only a matter of time before the Seattle Seahawks are able to get to the Super Bowl again, with head coach Pete Carroll successful in leading his team to the postseason in eight of his ten seasons leading this team, including a Championship win in 2013 and an encore appearance in the Big Game the following season.

No Chance to Win the NFC in 2020 / 2021

The New York Giants had a terrific offseason in terms of getting certain holes fixed, particularly their offensive line now made solid by rookie right tackle Andrew Thomas, but with a new head coach (Joe Judge) and a second-year quarterback (Daniel Jones) they are still a long way from being in the postseason hunt.

The Carolina Panthers are an interesting bet because with the talented Teddy Bridgewater now under center (he’s 22-12 in the NFL), they now have a chance for some long-needed predictability in that position, but without an improvement on the defensive side of the ball (they were ranked 23rd last season) it will be tough for them to see the postseason.

Looks like the Washington Redskins are predicted to have another rough season – bad news for fans that were hoping the addition of the rookie and former OSU EDGE rusher Chase Young might up their odds of winning more.

Pick: Could be Tom Brady’s final hurrah, so take the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to win the NFC Championship this year, their level of talent on both sides of the ball now high enough to close the deal.