The San Francisco 49ers and the Los Angeles Rams went to battle this evening for a right to play in Super Bowl LVI. When it was all said and done, it was the Rams who came out on top with a 20-17 victory in the NFC Championship Game. The Rams will play in their second Super Bowl in four seasons and will face the Cincinnati Bengals at their home SoFi Stadium.
The 49ers got into the playoffs despite being in third place in the NFC West. They finished the regular season with a 10-7 record, and with the help of a stingy defense, the 49ers took down the Dallas Cowboys and the Green Bay Packers in the playoffs to earn a trip to the NFC title game. Wide receiver Deebo Samuel has been a weapon for the 49ers this year, finishing the regular season with 77 receptions for 1,405 yards and six touchdowns. He also rushed for eight touchdowns, and his numbers led to him being named to the Pro Bowl and All-Pro First Team.
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“Man, it’s just so crazy,” Samuel said to Stacy Dales of the NFL Network after beating the Packers last week, per 247Sports. “We knew we needed a play and we talked about special teams being very important this week and this weather, you can’t really kick the ball so we went out here and got a blocked punt and we scored and tied the game. Man, it’s just crazy right now.”
The Rams played in their second conference title game in four seasons. After winning the NFC West earlier this month, the Rams took down the Arizona Cardinals and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with Tom Brady to face the 49ers for a right to be in the Super Bowl. The Rams reached to Super Bowl in 2019 (2018 season) but lost to Brady and the New England Patriots.
“We know what’s on the line. We’re one game away,” Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald said before the game, per the team’s official website. “I told them, pretty much, this is what you work for. All that offseason training, all that camp, all the long grinding days we put in is for playing games like this and we’re here now. We’re one game away. We just have to go out there and do our job and play a full game for four quarters and finish.”
