The San Francisco 49ers made it all the way to the NFC Championship Game this season.
Unfortunately, they fell at the hands of the eventual champion Los Angeles Rams by a final score of 20-17.
The fact the Rams beat the 49ers and went on to win it all is actually a trend, as shared by one user on Reddit and then by FOX Sports: NFL on Twitter.
Since 2002, every team that defeated the 49ers in the postseason has gone on to win the Super Bowl.
h/t BigDrew923/reddit pic.twitter.com/VN332jdbbA
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) February 24, 2022
As it turns out, the last six teams to beat the 49ers in the postseason since 2002 have all gone on to win the Super Bowl.
So at least fans in the Bay Area can say they are losing to the champs.
Adding Context To A Tough Trend
It should be pointed out that two of the six losses actually came in the Super Bowl.
So the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs make this list after becoming champions with the win over the 49ers.
What this list also shows is the fact the 49ers have had several periods of success since 2002.
They lost in the 2002 Divisional Round to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and then didn’t make the postseason again until the 2011 season.
They then went to three consecutive NFC Championship Games, winning one to advance to the Super Bowl in the 2012 season against the Ravens.
As we know, Baltimore came out on top.
The next period started in 2019 as the 49ers went to the Super Bowl and fell to the Chiefs.
They then nearly got back this past season before losing to the Rams.
This trend proves that the franchise has a way of rebounding and finding sustained success after rough stretches of time.
However, they are still trying to prove they can be the best team in the NFL for the first time since their last Super Bowl win back in the 1994 season.
NEXT: Two NFL Legends May Be Battling To Lead The 49ers
