History
The first NFC Championship Game was played following the 1970 regular season after the merger between the NFL and the American Football League. The game is considered the successor to the original NFL Championship, and its game results are listed with that of its predecessor in the annual NFL Record and Fact Book. The NFC consists of the pre-merger NFL teams with the exception of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Colts, and Cleveland Browns, who were moved to the American Football Conference following the merger to make the number of teams in each conference even at thirteen apiece; as well as the Seattle Seahawks, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the Carolina Panthers that all came into the league after the merger.
Every NFC team has played in an NFC Championship at least once. The Seattle Seahawks, who have been members in both the AFC and the NFC, hold the distinction of appearing in both conference title games. Only the Detroit Lions have yet to win an NFC Championship Game.
For the first time in the history of either Championship game, the NFC has seen 10 different winners in as many years between 2001 and 2010. The trend ended when the New York Giants won the 2011 NFC Championship game.
There has also been 8 different NFC runner-ups in as many years since 2004.
Read more about this topic: NFC Championship Game
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