February 02, 2022
After the best weekend of NFL playoff football... ever (?) in the divisional round, the conference championship games did not disappoint. As you're well aware, the Los Angeles Rams will face the Cincinnati Bengals (!) in the Super Bowl, after they dispatched of the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs, respectively.
The Rams are an interesting case study in trading away high draft picks for established veteran players.
All three of those players have been key figures in getting the Rams to the Super Bowl in 2021. They boldly took big swings, and it worked for them.
Meanwhile, the Bengals are going to serve as an example of how quickly things can turn around in the NFL. They were 2-14 in 2019, and 4-11-1 in 2020. As a result of those dreadful seasons, they landed Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase, they've drafted well otherwise, and they're in the Super Bowl. Sometimes teams aren't as far away as they might seem.
Anyway, let's get to killing off the Niners and end our hierarchy/obituary series for the season.
For the second consecutive year, a head coach turtled in the NFC Championship Game.
If you'll recall during the 2020-2021 playoffs, the Packers were down by eight with just over two minutes to go and facing a 4th and Goal from the Bucs' 8-yard line. Matt LaFleur incomprehensibly decided that his team's best chance of winning was to kick a field goal. 🤯
His reasoning was that the Packers had all three of their timeouts, plus the two minute warning, and they figured they'd just get a stop (no problem!), get the ball back, and drive the field for a game-winning TD (again, no problem!).
And sure enough, after the Packers took their three points, they kicked off, and the Bucs pretty easily salted the game away.
In the NFC Championship Game this year, Kyle Shanahan punted three times from inside the Rams' 45 yard line (well, sort of).
• In the first quarter, the Niners faced a 4th and 6 from the Rams' 40 yard line. Shanahan punted, giving up 3 winning percentage points:
---> SF (0) @ LA (0) <---
— 4th down decision bot (@ben_bot_baldwin) January 31, 2022
SF has 4th & 6 at the LAR 40
Recommendation (MEDIUM): 👉 Go for it (+1.7 WP)
Actual play: 🏈🦵 M.Wishnowsky punts 37 yards to LA 3, Center-T.Pepper, downed by SF-R.Dwelley. pic.twitter.com/7EI516cWxu
You know who was thrilled to see them punt? The Rams.
• In the third quarter, the Niners faced a 4th and 9 from the Rams' 42 yard line. Shanahan punted, giving up 1 winning percentage point.
---> SF (10) @ LA (7) <---
— 4th down decision bot (@ben_bot_baldwin) January 31, 2022
SF has 4th & 9 at the LAR 42
Recommendation : 🤷 Toss-up (+0.2 WP)
Actual play: 🏈🦵 M.Wishnowsky punts 31 yards to LA 11, Center-T.Pepper, fair catch by C.Kupp. pic.twitter.com/4vSfMygbRI
• And then finally, with 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Niners faced a 4th and 2 from the Rams' 45 yard line. That was an absolute no-brainer "go for it" situation. But, nope, Shanahan tried to draw the Rams offsides, purposely took a delay of game penalty, and then punted, giving up 6 winning percentage points.
---> SF (17) @ LA (14) <---
— 4th down decision bot (@ben_bot_baldwin) January 31, 2022
SF has 4th & 2 at the LAR 45
Recommendation (VERY STRONG): 👉 Go for it (+5.4 WP)
Actual play: 🚨 (Run formation) PENALTY on SF, Delay of Game, 5 yards, enforced at LA 45 - No Play. pic.twitter.com/V6OPu2Iyzv
You know who was ecstatic to see them punt? The Rams.
Shanahan's passiveness allowed the Rams to claw their way back, take the lead and erase a double-digit fourth quarter lead. Throw another devastating blown playoff game on the Shanahan pile:
The last four Conference Championship games/Super Bowls in which a team won after trailing by double-digits in the 4th quarter.
— Tucker Boynton (@Tucker_TnL) January 31, 2022
Patriots in SB LI (vs. Kyle Shanahan)
Patriots in '17 AFCCG
Chiefs in SB LIV (vs. Kyle Shanahan)
Rams in '21 NFCCG (vs. Kyle Shanahan)
The Niners had a very good team in 2021. They had a tough defense, a nasty offensive line, tackle-breaking beasts in Deebo Samuel and George Kittle, and good special teams. They treated fans around the league to upset wins over easy-to-hate teams in the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers, and for that, we salute you, Niners.
But for some strange reason, Shanahan decided to play out this entire season with an obviously sucky Jimmy Garoppolo at quarterback instead of Trey Lance, a player they expended major resources to acquire third overall in the 2021 NFL Draft.
The Niners did serious damage in the playoffs, but they could have done even more if not for their head coach sabotaging his own team.
And that does it for our NFC Hierarchy/Obituary this season.
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