We’re down to the final four teams left in the NFL postseason, and Championship Sunday is upon us. In the 56-year history of the Super Bowl, we’ve had seven rematches. That’s about 12.5% of the games being played between franchises that previously met on the big stage. This year there is an excellent chance that we could get number eight added to that list. A San Francisco 49ers victory in the NFC championship game guarantees a rematch in Super Bowl LVI regardless of who wins the AFC.
Three years ago, Jimmy Garoppolo and the Niners came up short against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs, 31-20, in Super Bowl LIV. Now, these same teams have the potential to face off again for the championship. The 49ers would relish this opportunity at revenge since they had it in the bag going into the fourth quarter against Kansas City in the previous matchup. If you recall, the 49ers were up 20-10 after three quarters and had KC on the ropes. Then Mahomes and the Chiefs flipped that magic light switch and outscored SF, 21-0 in the final 15-minutes.
Should the Bengals figure out a way to slow down the red-hot Chiefs and make it back to the Super Bowl against the Niners, this would be the third time these franchises would meet up on Super Bowl Sunday. San Francisco won both of those games in Super Bowls XVI and XXIII. This would be only the second occurrence with the same two organizations facing off a third time in the Super Bowl. The Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers have played three times, with Pittsburgh taking the first two. The Bengals and 49ers had double-digit losses last season, obviously missing the playoffs. If they are the Super Bowl matchup, that will have been quite the feat for both organizations in turning their fortunes around in such a way so quickly. The NFL historian is probably pulling for Bengals-49ers. Here are the other Super Bowl rematches we’ve seen over the years.
Looking at this list, an interesting trend I see is that the New England Patriots have played the majority of their Super Bowls against three teams. While the Patriots won’t be playing in it this year, I’m sure most of you are just hoping for a better game than last year’s when Tampa Bay completely demolished Kansas City. Nobody wants to see a blowout in the Super Bowl unless their team is in it and doing the ass-kicking.
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