4 NFL Bold Predictions for the Conference Championship Round

There's nothing quite like the NFL.

Football is one of the most intense, exciting sports on the planet. The source of the now-ubiquitous saying "Any Given Sunday," the NFL is a place where even struggling teams have a chance to topple the best in the league. Anything can happen when you only play 17 regular season games a year.

That uncertainty is a huge driver behind the excitement the NFL generates each and every season. What's more fun than watching something totally unexpected unfold before your eyes?

That's why, this year, we'll be bringing you four bold predictions to watch for in each week of the 2023 NFL season.

NFL Bold Predictions for Conference Championship Weekend

Brandon Aiyuk Will Score at Least 2 Touchdowns (+600)

This weekend's NFC Championship game is setting up to be a barnburner.

The San Francisco 49ers have boasted arguably the NFL's best offense this season and will be squaring off against a Detroit Lions defense that coughed up the 10th-most points in the regular season (395). The Lions' offense has churned out more than enough points to cover up for their lackluster defense all year, which could turn this contest into a scoring frenzy as they try to match blows with San Francisco.

There's a reason the line for this one is set at 50.5 points on FanDuel Sportsbook.

With that in mind, this could be a career-defining game for 49ers wideout Brandon Aiyuk, who established himself as one of the top receivers in the game throughout the 2023 campaign.

He is well-equipped to take advantage of a Lions secondary that's let opposing wideouts score the third-most fantasy points per game and will be relying on Cameron Sutton and Kindle Vildor to play significant snaps this weekend. That pair has allowed 9.8 and 8.1 yards per target, respectively, while also earning Pro Football Focus's 25th- and 19th-worst coverage grades.

Aiyuk has put better defensive backs than Detroit's in blenders all season, averaging the ninth-most receiving yards per game (83.9) despite stiff competition for targets from players like Deebo Samuel, George Kittle, and Christian McCaffrey. He could get even more work than usual this weekend, too, with Samuel nursing a concerning shoulder injury.

He'll leverage his soft matchup and increased workload into his first two-score day since Week 1.

Jahmyr Gibbs Will Put Up 25+ Rushing Yards in Both Halves (+250)

The 49ers are in a spot where Aiyuk can have a really nice day. The Lions are in a spot where they need rookie running back Jahmyr Gibbs to have a really nice day.

The Lions' best mode of attack this weekend will be their efficient running game. Only four teams' ground assaults ranked higher in numberFire's schedule-adjusted metrics than Detroit's, while San Francisco's rushing defense ranked close to the middle of the pack.

The Niners' Divisional Round foe exploited that "weakness" via stud running back Aaron Jones a week ago, with Jones producing 108 yards off of 18 carries (6 yards per carry). The Lions will be looking for similar results from Gibbs, whose explosiveness jumps off the screen each time he touches the ball.

Considering just how overmatched their own defense might be against the 49ers' top-ranked offense, the Lions should be doubly incentivized to get Gibbs the ball on offense. If they can steadily churn out efficient gains on the ground, they can soak up time and keep the 49ers' offense off the field.

This should keep Gibbs involved in the offense even if San Francisco pulls ahead, allowing for him to accumulate at least 25 rushing yards in each half of Sunday's game.

The Ravens Will Become the First Team to Score 30+ Points Against the Chiefs This Season

The Kansas City Chiefs have played some elite defense this year. Only the Baltimore Ravens' record-setting defense allowed fewer total points (280) than they did (294), and no team all year scored more than 27 points against them in any single week.

Even amidst the team's uncharacteristic offensive "struggles" this year, their defense helped earn them the top spot in the AFC West yet again in 2023.

Unfortunately for them, their season might be coming to a close this weekend -- the Ravens look like an absolute juggernaut of a team. Not only did Baltimore's defense outperform the Chiefs' defense this year, but their offense even took a whole leap forward -- there's a reason folks are expecting Lamar Jackson to take home his second MVP award.

While the Chiefs' defense excelled against the pass this year, they struggled against the run. numberFire's schedule-adjusted metrics ranked their passing defense third-best, but their 26th-ranked rushing defense fell flat. And this weekend, they'll be paired up against arguably the best rushing attack in the league.

Jackson is fresh off of a 100-yard rushing game and has almost literally been on fire since the Ravens' late-season bye. In games he's played since Week 14, they've averaged an absurd 36.6 points per outing. That includes a playoff win, plus games against other high-end defenses, including the 49ers and the Miami Dolphins.

The Ravens' Total Points line is set at 24.5 points with the over at +100 odds. They'll smash that over this weekend and become the first team this season to score at least 30 points against the Chiefs.

Travis Kelce Will Catch at Least 62.5 Receiving Yards (-114)

If there's anything the Ravens' elite defense is preparing to do this weekend, it's shutting down Travis Kelce.

Even in a "down year", the future Hall of Famer still led the league in receiving yards per game (65.6) at his position and led the Chiefs' offense in receptions and yards despite missing multiple games. He has been vital to his team's success this postseason, catching 12 passes for 145 yards and 2 touchdowns so far.

At first glance, this looks like an impossible matchup for Kelce. The Ravens' first-ranked defense gave up the sixth-fewest total passing yards and tied for the seventh-fewest fantasy points allowed to tight ends. But a closer look reveals that they might have a slight vulnerability to Kelce's position in the passing game.

Tight ends accounted for 25% of the receiving production Baltimore allowed during the year -- only 11 defenses allowed tight ends to account for a higher percentage. Their total volume didn't look great against the Ravens' elite defense, but tight ends seemed to have a slightly easier time picking up yards than wide receivers.

Kelce is already the focal point of Kansas City's passing offense and has a (slightly) better matchup going against the NFL's top-ranked defense than people might think. We've seen other top tight ends -- like Kittle (7/126) and Trey McBride (10/95/1) -- put up strong outings against Baltimore this year, paving the way for Kelce to hit the over on his 62.5-yards receiving prop.

If you want to look deeper into any of Sunday's Conference Championship games, consider taking advantage of FanDuel Sportsbook's NFL Playoffs No-Sweat Same Game Parlay. Check the promotions page for more information.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.