• It was an exciting Championship Sunday as both games went down to the final kick.
  • The fans were out in force ahead of the AFC title game.
  • Gillette Stadium was the venue as the Patriots and Ravens went head-to-head.
  • Patriots rusher BenJarvus Green-Ellis went in for the opening touchdown in the second quarter to give his side a 10-3 lead.
  • Joe Flacco soon got the Ravens moving.
  • And Flacco found Dennis Pitta on a six-yard pass level things up at 10-10.
  • Stephen Gostkowski's field goal, his second of three on the day, put the Patriots 13-10 ahead at half-time.
  • Torrey Smith's third-quarter touchdown, on a 29-yard pass from Flacco, gave the Ravens the lead for the first time.
  • Tom Brady's quarterback sneak for a touchdown set up an exciting finale with the Patriots 23-20 in front.
  • It all came down to Ravens kicker Billy Cundiff, who had a 32-yard field goal attempt with 11 seconds left to force overtime.
  • But Cundiff's kick sailed wide to give the Patriots their fifth AFC championship in 11 seasons.
  • Head coach Bill Belichick and Brady have been mainstays for the Patriots over the last decade.
  • The Patriots got their hands on the Lamar Hunt trophy.
  • Attention then turned to Candlestick Park where Emmy award-winning singer Kristin Chenoweth belted out the national anthem.
  • The 49ers were playing host to the Giants with the NFC title on the line.
  • Vernon Davis soon had the home fans on their feet with a 73-yard touchdown catch and run.
  • The Giants responded in the second quarter with Eli Manning finding Bear Pascoe for a six-yard touchdown catch.
  • Manning was delighted with his efforts.
  • The Gold Rush - San Francisco's cheerleaders - were not so thrilled.
  • Davis made his second touchdown grab in the third quarter to edge the 49ers back in front.
  • But the Giants responded in kind, this time through Mario Manningham.
  • With the score 17-17 at the end of regulation, Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes nailed a 31-yard field goal in overtime to clinch victory for the visitors.
  • Greenock-born Tynes earned a kiss from wife Amanda after repeating the trick of his winning kick in the same game four years earlier.
  • Manning got his hands on the George Halas trophy and advances to a Super Bowl rematch with the Patriots, the team the Giants beat in 2008.

Championship Games

It was an exciting Championship Sunday as both games went down to the final kick.