The San Francisco 49ers had a six-game winning streak over the Los Angeles Rams entering Sunday's NFC Championship Game. SoFi Stadium was projected to be 65 percent red and 35 percent blue. The 49ers were coming off three consecutive road victories and looking for a fourth. Everything was lining up for a second NFC Championship in three years. But when the clock hit zeroes Sunday night, the confetti was blue and yellow.

So what happened?

There's been plenty of blame thrown around. Jimmy Garoppolo's poor performance, the defense allowing 13 points in the fourth quarter, Deebo Samuel not getting a single touch over the final 12:42 of the game, and Jaquiski Tartt's dropped interception have all been reasons given for the loss.

What if we look at it from the other side, though? Instead of looking at how the 49ers lost, why not look at how the Rams won?


The Rams were able to do things against the 49ers on Sunday that they couldn't in their previous matchups, not just from their two losses in 2021, but in all of their losses against the 49ers since 2019.

So what changed on Sunday that led the Rams to their second Super Bowl appearance in the Sean McVay Era?

The 49ers' third-down success vs. the Rams' third-down success

During the 49ers' two regular-season victories against the Rams in 2021, San Francisco converted 61% (17-for-28) of their third-down opportunities, with an average distance to the marker of 6.6 yards. Sunday was a wildly different story, with the 49ers converting on just 33% (3-for-9), with an average distance to the marker of 8.2 yards.

The 49ers run game didn't do much all game, which forced the offense into tough third-down situations that relied on Garoppolo to throw, and Garoppolo struggled with those plays. He had just three third-down completions on eight attempts, with the game-sealing interception coming on third down.


The Rams, on the other hand, took advantage of the 49ers' third-down defense, converting 11-of-18 opportunities, including both of Cooper Kupp's touchdown receptions, the first of which came on a 3rd-and-13. The Rams success running on first down helped set up an average distance to go of 6.3 yards on third downs, and while the Rams didn't have a great game on the ground—just 70 yards in 29 carries—Los Angeles gained 37 of those 70 yards on first down run attempts.

The Rams easily won the time of possession battle

Sunday was just the second time since the start of 2019 that the Rams won the time of possession battle against the 49ers, with the last time coming in their 34-31 Week 16 victory over the 49ers. The Rams only won the time-of-possession battle in that game by less than five minutes. The Rams won that same battle by more than 11 minutes in the NFC Championship Game. So what happened?

The 49ers have only had two games against the Rams since 2019, where they had less than 30 rushing attempts. Not coincidentally, those two instances were the Week 16 game in 2019 and Sunday's loss. In the 2019 game, the 49ers still managed to run the ball 23 times for 119 yards —an average of 5.17 yards per carry. Sunday was a different story altogether, with the 49ers running the ball 20 times for an abysmal 50 yards. The Rams were finally able to stop the 49ers' run game.

The 49ers' offense is mostly about ball control—long drives based on successful early-down runs to give the passing game plenty of third-and-shorts to convert. Everything that went wrong offensively on Sunday revolves around the poor performance from the run game. Losing the time of possession, converting just 33 percent of third downs, and ultimately scoring zero points over the final 17 minutes of the game were too much to overcome against the Rams.


The Rams had a second offensive weapon in Odell Beckham Jr.

Cooper Kupp went off on Sunday as he usually does. The fifth-year receiver out of Eastern Washington had 11 receptions for 142 yards and two touchdowns against the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game, his third consecutive game with at least 100 receiving yards against the San Francisco defense.

What hurt the 49ers defense was that Kupp wasn't the only receiver to eclipse the 100-yard mark for the Rams on Sunday. Odell Beckham Jr. had a nine-reception, 113-yard performance of his own, by far his best game against the 49ers. In his first two games against the 49ers in 2021, Beckham combined for just four receptions and 36 yards.

The Rams passing attack gave the 49ers something they hadn't seen in any game they played in 2021: two receivers with over 100 receiving yards in the same game. So while receivers like Kupp, Davante Adams, and AJ Brown would get theirs, the 49ers were able to limit the damage from other skill players. Beckham's performance for the Rams was their best from a skill player not named Cooper Kupp against the 49ers in 2021. Prior to Beckham's performance on Sunday, the most receiving yards a Rams player had against the 49ers was Tyler Higbee's 55 yards in Week 18 (although Higbee did have two touchdowns). The 49ers defense could handle the Rams offense if only one player had a big game, but two proved to be too much.

So yes, while there could be blame thrown at certain aspects of the 49ers' own game on Sunday, the Rams played their best game against San Francisco in three years.


Something that seemed lost in the midst of the 49ers six-game winning streak against the Rams, and the conversation surrounding it, was the fact that the Rams are a very good football team.

Unfortunately for the 49ers, they showed it on Sunday.
Read Original Article
Visit 49ers Webzone

More San Francisco 49ers News