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The Championship round of the 2016 NFL playoff schedule continues on Sunday evening. The winner of this game will be declared NFC Champions and be headed to Super Bowl 50. The Carolina Panthers are playing at home against the Arizona Cardinals.
Preview
The NFC Championship Game features the nearly undefeated Carolina Panthers and the Arizona Cardinals. The Panthers got up big on Seattle last week before holding off a Seahawks comeback attempt in order to advance. Arizona, meanwhile, made it here by beating the Packers in an overtime thriller. Cam Newton versus Carson Palmer doesn't have the "Brady vs. Manning" name power to it, but these two quarterbacks are NFL MVP candidates based on how they played in the regular season. Both of these teams have tough defenses so life won't be easy on them. The Panthers have home field advantage and they're favored to win.
Prediction
The Panthers looked downright dominant early in their game against the Seahawks last week. The score was 31-0 at the half. Carolina didn't manage to score in the second half and ultimately only won by one touchdown, but they were never in serious jeopardy of losing the game. Originally I thought the Panthers might slip up in the playoffs a little bit, but that clearly wasn't the case. They're arguably the best team in the NFL right now and I don't want to bet against them. Dare I say this team feels like one of destiny?
Here is all the information you need to know in order to watch the game:
Game time/date: Sunday, Jan. 24 at 6:40 p.m. EST
Location: Bank of America Stadium - Charlotte, North Carolina.
TV: FOX
Announcers: Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Erin Andrews, Chris Myers (field reporter).
Radio: Westwood One: Kevin Kugler, James Lofton, Tim Ryan (Field reporter). SIRIUS: 88 (WW1), 83 (Ari), 82 (Car). XM: 88 (WW1), 226 (Ari), 82 (Car).
Online streaming: FOX Sports Go
Odds: Panthers favored by 3.5 points
Over/under: 47.5
Referee: Bill Vinovich
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Note: This is an open thread. Discuss the game here.