Super Bowl XLVI Will Be a Rematch of Super Bowl XLII

The summation of Championship Weekend.

The AFC and NFC Championship Games ended on whimpers, not bangs. The Ravens missed on a game-winning TD, so they attempted a field goal to take the AFC Championship to overtime. PK Billy Cundiff missed the kick by the widest of margins that it was difficult for even the Patriots to believe what they had just seen. The Patriots had just successfully gotten to the Super Bowl with the 31st ranked defense and after one of Tom Brady's worst games ever.


The NFC Championship also ended on a field goal, but that one was made by the Giants after 49ers backup KR Kyle Williams fumbled the ball, giving the Giants automatic field position for a field goal. The game was closely played in the hard rain, resulting in near-even play for the game, although the 49ers had problems all game converting 3rd downs.


A preview of the Super Bowl and my thoughts as a 49ers fan after the break.

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On February 5th, Super Bowl XLVI will be between the New York Giants and New England Patriots once again. One team will get their 4th Super Bowl trophy, and both quarterbacks are out to prove their legacies legitimate. With a win by the Patriots, Tom Brady ties the record for Super Bowl wins by Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana, giving him legitimate claim to be one of the top 5 quarterbacks of all time. Eli Manning however, can establish himself as being a better quarterback than his older brother and being remembered as one of the best #1 draft picks in recent history.


Well, the 49ers just lost the NFC Championship Game. I would have bet $1,000,000 that the 49ers wouldn't even be in the NFC title game at the beginning of the season. Really, who's got it better than us? Jim Harbaugh took the 49ers from a perpetual losing team to one that is now a serious threat in the NFC seemingly overnight without a training camp and without the team's #1 wide receiver for the majority of the season. Alex Smith performed admirably as well, proving that he isn't a total draft bust, although he does still have work to do. Frank Gore may be getting older, but Kendall Hunter will be a welcome replacement to him once Gore retires.


Kyle Williams is no doubt the goat after that game where he fumbled 2 punt returns. The first one was all on him not getting out of the way before the ball hit his leg, allowing the Giants to regain possession and hit a critical field goal. The 2nd fumble was not all on him, being an excellent strip by the Giants. Williams needs to learn better ball security, though. Luckily for him, there were numerous reasons the 49ers didn't beat the Giants, including their total inability to convert 3rd downs and Alex Smith passing far too much to Vernon Davis. Delanie Walker was a limited target despite being a big factor in their previous game against the Giants and Michael Crabtree got the only WR catch of the game.


The person I'm most disappointed in though, has to be Vernon Davis. Yes, he scored 2 touchdowns. But his behavior was ridiculous. After having an awesome game last week and showing people how much he had matured, he returned to his old ways (however very briefly)  and coach Harbaugh let him get away with it. I was upset when Davis got that first penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct, but then to hear Harbaugh compare his celebration to the Lambeau Leap was ridiculous. Davis also let hubris get the best of him, publicly hoping the Giants would beat the Packers and announcing he would host an NFC Championship Game party after the game (which he later cancelled).


Vernon, you're a great player but PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF BILL WALSH, DON'T TURN INTO TERRELL OWENS. If Owens hadn't become the giant douchebag that he will be remembered for, rather than his playing ability, he and Jeff Garcia could have had some chance to become a much better team.