The NFC and AFC Championship games are this Sunday, Jan. 19, and you’re having trouble with who you should cheer for. Unless you are actually a fan of one of the remaining teams, you’re probably unsure. But if you are say a Steelers, a Browns, even a Raiders fan, or your team that I didn’t mention isn’t still in the playoffs, my guess is you’re torn on who you want to see in/win the Super Bowl. There are three ways to go about this; one way is to look at the whys and why nots on which team to have high hopes for, of course look at the quarterbacks, specifically at what MLB team drafted them and how they may have faired on that team to make them better, and number of Twitter followers.
AFC Championship
The Denver Broncos
Why: Peyton Manning is getting up there in age, so wouldn’t it be nice to see him cap of a historic season with a Super Bowl ring?  Plus I picked them to win it all in my Bold Predictions for 2014.
Why not: Peyton doesn’t have the best track record in the playoffs, so it might not be the best idea to pick the Broncos to win it all.
Peyton Manning undrafted: Outside of football, Manning wouldn’t have quite the career in anything else like he’s had in the NFL. Maybe if he did decide to explore the MLB he might have been picked up by someone like the Tampa Bay Rays and helped that team to some divisional championships back in the early 2000s.
Twitter followers: @Broncos 433.1k
 
The New England Patriots
Why: I’m not sure why anyone would pick the Pats. Is it because you hate Belichick and Brady so much that you like them? Or do you pick them because you think they can win it all? I just don’t know.
Why not: Bill Belichick, Tom Brady, Patriot fans, etc.
Tom Brady Montreal Expos: Who are the Montreal Expos, you ask? I’m not even sure they were considered a baseball team, but now that team is the young star-studded Washington Nationals.  Brady would definitely be a father figure on the team now, but he probably wouldn’t get much playing time with Ramos behind the plate.
Twitter followers: @Patriots 793.9k
 
NFC ChampIonship 
The Seattle Seahawks
Why: “Started from the bottom now we here.” From bottom dwellers to top predators, the Hawks have become the hottest team in football. With swag like Seattle, it’s hard not to pick these guys as your “playoff team.” People who aren’t usually in the band are even hopping on the wagon, so hurry up and get a good seat.
Why not: You don’t want to be stereotyped as a “bandwagoner.”
Russell Wilson Baltimore Orioles/Colorado Rockies: The Orioles lost Brian Roberts this offseason and Flaherty looks to be next in line, so as a 2nd baseman he probably would be effective in this line up, but maybe not. There have been 13 new second basemen on the Rockies Opening Day roster for the last 13 years so he probably wouldn’t be there right now either. His rights were also traded to the Rangers recently where he definitely wouldn’t be getting any playing time. 
Twitter followers: @Seahawks 375.3k
 
The San Francisco 49ers
Why: The Niners were so close to winning it all last year, and it would be cool to see them make it back to the Super Bowl this year. One more Super Bowl win would tie them with the Pittsburgh Steelers. It would be nice to be able to say, “yinz don’t have the most Super Bowls anymore.” Also, Colin Kaepernick’s Beats commercial introduced the song “The Man” by Aloe Blacc, so we are forever in debt to him for that.
Why not: Jim Harbaugh’s cheap khakis and temper tantrums.
Colin Kaepernick Chicago Cubs: Kaepernick is a pitcher at heart, and the Cubs could use some help at pitcher.  If he throws a baseball harder than he throws a football, there’s no doubt he would boost the Cubs’ rotation.
Twitter followers: @49ers 582.2k
 
AFC Edge: Peyton Manning and the Mile High Denver Broncos.
This one doesn’t come down to anything specific. In the end not even my criteria mattered to me.  The Twitter followers are in favor of the Patriots, which should have guided them to an easy victory over the Broncos, but personal preference and a strong disliking of the hype around the Patriots has helped Denver. Even Peyton’s struggles in the playoffs and struggles against Brady couldn’t help New England. Also, the fact that Peyton never had his mind on any other sport than football, going undrafted in any other sport, has helped him and the Broncos pull the “upset,” if you will. Plus, in my Bold Predictions for 2014 article I chose the Broncos to win it all. It’s not that I like the Broncos or even Manning for that matter, but rather that I really want to be right on this guess.
 
NFC Edge: Colin Kaepernick and the San Francisco 49ers.
There are plenty of reasons to pick the 49ers over the Seahawks of Seattle. One, being called a “bandwagon” may be the biggest insult in all of sports, or being told you “play ball like a girl” (Sandlot reference). Niners Nation also needs redemption from last year’s embarrassment, and it would be cool to see a Harbaugh win the Super Bowl for two consecutive years. They have almost 210k more followers than the Seahawks, but the Hawks are on the rise so don’t expect that margin to be that big in years to come. Colin Kaepernick also would help his respective MLB team more than what Wilson would do for any of the three he was a part of at one point.  Mr. K introduced us to a great song, in a Beats commercial, in Seattle. That gives him the edge “because he can’t hear you.”