The Detroit Lions are setting themselves up to face off against the San Francisco 49ers this coming Sunday. The winner of that battle of top-tier NFC teams will decide who represents the conference in the Super Bowl against the AFC.
Ironically, this is the first time these two teams have faced off with a chance to play for a championship.
Back in 1957, a mere 67 years ago, these two teams faced off in San Francisco for a chance to play for the NFL Championship. Not only is that matchup history repeating itself, but it is also the last time the Lions won a road playoff game.
Fast forward to 2024, and the Lions are hoping that the result doesn’t change. The score of that game was 31 to 27 in favor of Detroit. The Niners held a commanding 24 to 7 halftime lead led by the passing of Y.A Tittle. The second half saw the Lions 24 second-half points while holding the 49ers to just three points.
This 49ers team is likely to come out of the gates firing. They will be pressing the Lions’ secondary and linebacking groups. Brock Purdy will be doing his best Tittle impression but the Lions need to do what they did back in 1957, bend but not break. This Lions defense has done that all year; they need to do it for two more games.
Will history repeat itself come Sunday?