Hey folks, and welcome to our coverage of the NFC Championship, which in this case is sort of an extension of the NFC West Championship.
It’s the San Francisco 49ers, on the road in the comfortable conditions of a state-of-the-art facility that will soon be the Super Bowl venue, against a beleaguered and support-troubled hometown team: the Los Angeles Rams.
In fact, the Rams — best quarterback, most talent, best division finish, home game — are in a bit of an odd position. LA seems to fit right into the “no one likes us” category, despite all the perks listed above, including the January home game you play all season to win. Or worse yet, maybe it’s the “no one cares about us” space they sit in (gulp).
Such is life for a Los Angeles-based NFL team: fancy management, few fans. There was a reason the city was empty of the nation’s most popular league for so long: They just don’t like it that much. Or maybe LA, a sizeable diaspora city, is alone in others, like the 49ers for example: visiting the home team this week.
Worse yet for the Rams, San Francisco beat them twice in the regular season, most recently 27-24 at this very venue just a few weeks ago, extending their formidable winning streak to six against the SoCal franchise.
So yeah, there are a lot of negative stories when it comes to these Rams. And it’s not all fair, of course: These Rams are actually a terrific team, and they’re actually the favorites to win today. And if they win, they’ll be in their second Super Bowl in four seasons. A lot of franchises would sign up for that (I can think of two right here in New York).
This is the team of QB Matthew Stafford, wide receiver Cooper Kupp, defensive tackle Aaron Donald and cornerback Jalen Ramsey. Even Matt Gay, whose clutch kick put them in the NFC title game, is a Pro Bowler. So this team has Super Bowl-caliber weaponry: They only have a few fans and they can’t beat the Niners. Which is a bit of a problem.
That’s because the Niners’ surprisingly handsome quarterback Jimmy Garropolo — passable/good to good, only sometimes very good — is further proof that it’s possible for a franchise to get into big games without the Mahomes and Rodgers of the world, and I actually won. they. (Brad Johnson and Trent Dilfer also helped.)
The deadly Jimmy G excels beyond his level of natural talent, in part because he can rely on the dynamic cast he’s surrounded by: five pro bowlers, seven backups, including wide receiver Deebo Samuel and tight end George Kittle. . They’re well coached by head coach Kyle Shanahan, and they have the mettle to win on the road, in the cold and snow against a team with three more wins and a Rodgers.
That means there’s no fear for these 49ers in the controlled and considerably friendlier atmosphere these two teams will play in today.
How will it end? Well, that’s what we’re here to find out. We’ll have some more pre-game fodder before kickoff and get to your thoughts, whenever you send them. Seriously, hit me with anything – I’m here for you. Send me an email with your thoughts or tweet @LengelDavid and I’ll put your name in the paper (your mom will be so proud).
We’ll be back soon with more: stay with us!
www.theguardian.com
George is Digismak’s reported cum editor with 13 years of experience in Journalism