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The Eagles vs. Ravens Super Bowl line should be at Baltimore -2 ½, assuming of course these two teams face off against one another in the big game.
The oddsmakers have Philadelphia a favorite to get in but they are also focused on the Steelers - not the Ravens.
Pundits and gamblers alike believe that the Ravens have a better shot of beating the Steelers than the Cardinals have of beating the Eagles.
This is the Steelers' fourth trip to the AFC title game in eight years and their first under coach Mike Tomlin, who already has the team poised for a Super Bowl appearance in his second season at the helm.
Ravens coach John Harbaugh has been just as impressive in an even shorter tenure with the Ravens. The rookie coach has the team on the brink of the Super Bowl after it went 5-11 in 2007.
The Ravens have made that tremendous turnaround not only with a first-year coach, but also a first-year quarterback. With last Saturday's 13-10 win over No. 1 seed Tennessee, Joe Flacco became the first rookie quarterback to win two playoff games, both on the road.
"We've been confident in ourselves all year," said the first-round draft pick out of Delaware, who's 7-3 overall away from home. "It seems like we've been on the road for the longest time. It doesn't matter to us. We're going to go out there and battle the crowd, battle the other team, and give it our best."
The Ravens, who took the wild-card route to winning the NFL championship in 2000, are the second No. 6 seed since 1990 to advance to a conference title game. The last team to do so was Pittsburgh when it won the Super Bowl in 2005.
Flacco completed 27 of 59 passes for 307 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions in two games against Pittsburgh in the regular season.
The Steelers defense, though, could have a hole Sunday with All-Pro safety Troy Polamalu nursing a calf injury. He'll be limited in practice this week.
"We're at the point of the season where it's about getting ready to play and being at the very best you can be on game day," Tomlin said Tuesday. "If that means sacrificing a little physical preparation for him, we're willing to do that."
Philadelphia (11-6-1) and Arizona (11-7) met on Thanksgiving night, but few could have predicted that would be an NFC Championship Game preview. The teams entered that matchup at the Eagles' Lincoln Financial Field headed in opposite directions.
The Eagles had fallen to 5-5-1 after a 36-7 loss at Baltimore in which five-time Pro Bowl quarterback Donovan McNabb was benched for the first time in his 10-year NFL career. The Cardinals came into the game 7-3 and were on the verge of clinching their first division title in 33 years.
Arizona never got in the game, though, as Philadelphia jumped to a 21-0 lead en route to a 48-20 victory. McNabb completed 27 of 39 passes for 260 yards and a season-high four touchdowns, and he has carried the team ever since.
That victory provided a spark for the Eagles, as they won four of their last five regular-season games, outscoring opponents by an average of 23.0 points in those wins.
Odds on the 2009 Super Bowl and the Conference Championship games could be found at SBG Global
Christopher Costigan, Gambling911.com Publisher
