After defeating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC Divisional Round, the Los Angeles Rams will now play the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship at SoFi Stadium.
The clash between NFC West rivals is scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 30 at 3:40 p.m. PT on FOX.
Los Angeles got off to about as good of a start as they could have hoped for against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as they went into the half up 20-3. Another touchdown had them ahead 27-3 in the third quarter, but the perfect storm of mistakes nearly cost them the game.
Meanwhile, the 49ers managed to overcome their own halftime deficit as their defensive line shut down the Green Bay Packers offense. On the final possession, Deebo Samuel converted a third-and-7 run that set up Robbie Gould’s game-winning field goal that punched San Francisco’s ticket to the NFC Championship game.
During the 2021 season, the Rams dropped both their matchups against their 49ers with their Week 18 loss a particularly brutal one. Los Angeles was up 17-3 at the half, but a stagnant offense allowed San Francisco to climb back in at ultimately win the game in overtime after a Matthew Stafford deep pass to Odell Beckham Jr. was intercepted.
The 49ers have been able to win several consecutive games on the road, and coming back to Los Angeles where they have a devout following could spell trouble for the Rams.
Each Rams loss can be attributed to turnovers and poor play up front, two areas that will definitely be the focus for head coach Sean McVay and the coaching staff as they try to game plan for the 49ers. If they are able to keep Kyle Shanahan from running the ball and controlling time of possession, they have a great shot of staying home and playing in SoFi Stadium again for Super Bowl LVI.
On the other side of the bracket, the Kansas City Chiefs will be hosting the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday at 12 p.m. PT on CBS.
