Teams from the NFC West represented the NFC in the Super Bowl in two out of the last three seasons, and now the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers square off in the NFC Championship for a chance to become the third NFC West team in the Big Game.
The #6 San Francisco 49ers defeated the #4 LA Rams twice during the regular season, including an overtime victory in Week 18 that locked up a wild-card berth for the Niners. Yet, despite losing to Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers twice this season, Sean McVay and the Rams are -3.5 favorites in the NFC Championship game.
| NFC Championship Game |
- #6 San Francisco 49ers vs #4 LA Rams
- Kick-off: 3:30 pm PT
- Location: Arrowhead Stadium, KC
- Point Spread: LAR -3.5
- Total: 46 o/u
- Money Line: SF +160 / LAR -180
The 2018 LA Rams won the NFC Championship, but lost to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl 53. The 2019 San Francisco 49ers won the NFC Championship, but lost to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 54.
You can back the LA Rams at +200 odds to win Super Bowl 56 as the second favorite on the NFL futures board at DraftKings. The 49ers are +450 odds to win the Super Bowl for their sixth championship and first since the 1994 season.
LA Rams -3.5
The Rams will have to defeat two division foes in the postseason if they want a trip to the Super Bowl. They defeated the #5 Arizona Cardinals 34-11 during an easy victory in the NFC wild card. The game marked the return of running back Cam Akers.
The Rams were +2.5 underdogs against the defending-champion #2 Tampa Bay Bucs and Tom Brady in the NFC Divisional Round. The Rams jumped out to a 27-3 lead, but nearly blew it when Brady and the Bucs stormed back to tie the game late in the fourth quarter. Cooper Kupp made two huge catches, which set up a game-winning field goal for Matt Gay. The Rams knocked out Brady and the Bucs and earned their second trip to the NFC Championship in the last four seasons.
In Week 10, the Rams lost a Monday Night Football road game at Levi’s Stadium against the 49ers by 21 points. They could only muster up 10 points in their lowest-scoring game of the season. The Rams dropped the final game of the regular season to the 49ers 27-24 in overtime. Despite the fact the game was at home at SoFi Field, most seats were bought up by 49ers fans. The anti-Rams crowd rattled the Rams and they lost by three points.
The Rams, especially McVay, pleaded with fans to not resell their tickets to 49ers fans, so they don’t have a hostile crowd in the NFC Championship.
“I’ve never seen so much red at our home stadium,” said McVay after the loss.
If the Rams defeat the 49ers, they’ll earn a chance to become the second team in NFL history to play the Super Bowl in their home stadium. Super Bowl 56 will be played at SoFi Stadium, which the Rams share with the LA Chargers.
SF 49ers +3.5
The 49ers hope they can run the table and defeat the Rams for the third time this season. The final game of the season was essentially a home game for them at what players joked was Levi’s Stadium South.
The 49ers went on the road to win both of their games in the playoffs so far. They picked off the #3 Dallas Cowboys in the Jerry Dome in the NFC wild card. The 49ers were a popular pick as an underdog at +3, and they held on to win 23-17.
In the NFC Divisional Round, the 49ers won a close one on the road against the #1 Green Bay Packers on the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field. The 49ers were +5.5 underdogs and prevailed 13-10.
“It’s dangerous, man. When a team gets hot, it’s dangerous,” said quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. “So we’ve just got to keep this thing going, focus on next week now, and keep this thing rolling.”
Credit special teams for that victory. They blocked two kicks, including a blocked punt by Jordan Willis, which was picked up by Talanoa Hufanga, who scampered into the end zone for San Francisco’s only touchdown in that game.
Kicker Robbie Gould drilled a field goal as time expired to upset the Packers in what was probably Aaron Rodgers’ final game with Green Bay.
The 49ers are dogs once again at +3.5 heading into the NFC Championship. If you’re a 49ers fan who loves to bet, you’re pumped that you were able to get the half-point hook. Then again, home teams cover 57% of the time when they meet in a revenge game in the postseason, which bodes well for the Rams.