As the 2023 NFL season gets underway, the San Francisco 49ers are attempting to do something that they have made somewhat traditional over the years—reaching three consecutive NFC Conference Championship games. They achieved the feat in the ’80s and the ’90s, as well as exactly a decade ago. This season they attempt to complete the feat for the fourth time in their esteemed history.
49ers Bid For Third Consecutive NFC Conference Championship Game?
Throughout the course of the last two seasons, the 49ers have been perennial contenders. However, unfortunately for them, both of the campaigns ended in the NFC Conference Championship game. Last season injuries to their top three quarterbacks saw them outgunned by the Philadelphia Eagles while the year before it was Matthew Stafford and his Los Angeles Rams.
This season, the 49ers look set for a collision course with the Eagles once more. Despite starting quarterback and last season’s Mr. Irrelevant Brock Purdy not being considered one of the top NFL quarterbacks in preseason, he has steered his side to an impressive 5-1 record thus far. A week six humbling at the hands of the Cleveland Browns may well have made both the bookmakers and the team’s fans nervous, but there can be no denying that the franchise is in the midst of yet another purple patch.
The last time the 49ers were in such form over such a prolonged period was exactly a decade ago. Let’s take a look at how they fared in their three consecutive NFC Championship games last time around.
Overtime Heartbreak at the Hands of Eli Manning’s New York Giants
Despite losing their opening game of the 2011 season against the Seattle Seahawks, the 49ers turned things around and took the NFC by surprise. Led by quarterback Alex Smith and coach Jim Harbaugh, the team finished the season with an impressive 13-3 record, securing the NFC West division title. As a result of their regular season heroics, they received a first-round bye before hosting the New Orleans Saints in the Divisional Round of the postseason.
That game will forever be remembered as one of quarterback Smith’s finest performances, throwing for 299 yards and three touchdowns in one of the most dramatic games in NFL playoff history. The 49ers triumphed over the Saints 36-32, which set them up to host the Giants in the NFC Conference Championship game.
Unfortunately for them, overtime heartbreak would await at the hands of Eli Manning and Co., and it was the MetLife Stadium outfit that would progress to the Super Bowl where they would knock off the New England Patriots once more, just as they did four years prior.
First-Ever Super Bowl Defeat
While the 2011 season was exciting, the following year was even better. In 2012, the 49ers entered the season with one thing on their mind – Redemption.
They came up against the Giants earlier that year and suffered a narrow 20-17 loss. Determined to make things right, the team played with a chip on their shoulder, and it showed. Colin Kaepernick had replaced Alex Smith as the starting quarterback, and with his athleticism and arm strength, he added an extra dimension to the Niners’s offense. Meanwhile, the defense remained staunch, allowing the Niners to amass an impressive record of 11-4-1 and secure the NFC West division title once more.
The team then prevailed against Aaron Rodgers and his Green Bay Packers in the Divisional Round to set up a meeting against their rival Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Conference Championship Game. Unlike the year before however, this time around they would prevail, with Kaepernick finishing with 16 completions out of 21 attempts for a total of 233 yards and a touchdown, along with 21 rushing yards.
In their five previous Super Bowl appearances, the 49ers had a perfect 5-0 record. However that came crashing down this time around as Joe Flacco led the underdog Ravens to a shocking upset 34-31 victory.
NFC Conference Championship Game Streak Ends With Defeat
The 2013 season was a bit up and down. Indeed, the 49ers carried on their distinction for the third consecutive campaign, only this time, it wasn’t as smooth sailing. At this point, the Californians had become synonymous with success and were bordering on an unstoppable force in their conference. The team had to deal with various issues, including player injury and internal conflicts, resulting in a regular season record of 12-4.
In the Wildcard round, they would narrowly defeat the Packers once more. They would then meet a Carolina Panthers side spearheaded by ‘Super’ Cam Newton, but they were dominated and it was the 49ers who progressed once more.
Unfortunately, however, they would have to battle it out against an all-time great Seattle Seahawks side featuring the likes of Marshawn Lynch, Richard Sherman, and Russell Wilson, and they would ultimately have too much to handle in that NFC Conference Championship. The Washington state side ran out 23-17 winners, before thrashing Peyton Manning’s Denver Broncos 43-8 in one of the most lop-sided Super Bowls in history.