By MIKE HERNDON, columnist

NFCandAFCChampionshipGameLogos NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- There is little doubt that the four best teams in the NFL were playing this past weekend. Sure, the 49ers flopped in the NFC Championship game after Brock Purdy’s first-quarter injury derailed any hopes they might have had, but over the course of the season and postseason, I’d take these four over anyone.

It’s always a worthwhile exercise to examine what lessons might be learned from the way these rosters and coaching staffs are constructed.

Let’s start with spending habits. Where are the top teams in the league investing heavily and where are they looking for value? Here is a positional breakdown of where each of the four teams ranks in the NFL when it comes to average annual value (AAV) of current contracts for each position according to Spotrac:

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