WhoDat!656

2. Good news for Niners? San Francisco fell minutes short of making it to Indianapolis and Super Bowl XLVI. But based on recent trends, San Francisco or another NFC West team will advance to Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans. As CBS Sportsline reporter Clark Judge recently pointed out, the division that plays the AFC East during the regular season has wound up in the Super Bowl every season since 2006. In 2006, the Bears played their nondivision games against the AFC East and advanced to the Super Bowl; in 2007, the Giants did it; in 2008 the Cardinals did it; in 2009 the Saints did it; last season the Packers did it; and this season the Giants did it again.

Next season, the NFC West is slated to play its nondivision games against the AFC East, which bodes well for the 49ers, Cardinals, Seahawks and Rams. If history repeats itself, one of these NFC West teams will be returning to the Super Bowl.

Super Bowl 2012: One play can change everything -- Adam Schefter's 10 Spot - ESPN

"A Veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to "The United States of America" for an amount of "up to and including my life."

saintfan

Trends are trends and they are meaningful in some way I suppose, however in this case I have precisely zero concern about San Francisco...and in particular Alex Smith.

WhoDat!656

Apparently GW did as well and we know how that turned out!!

Euphoria

Oh I don't think SF even comes close to the NFC game next year.

They got to where they were by D really and they don't usually perform consistently year to year.

Its like they have a great year then falter for a couple of years before they rebound. Sort of like the Giants.

Tobias-Reiper

More like coincidences are coincidences, and they don't mean a thing.

.

Halo

I lost all respect for "trends" when the Saints blasted through so many in 2009 to reach the Superbowl in 2010. Every week there was another hater/nay-sayer with some obscure fact trending to the conclusion it was impossible for the Saints to make the Superbowl.

When we got there, the final "trend" was how few teams who make the Superbowl win it on their first trip... nuff said.

How about this trend: I can see absolutely zero correlation between NFC teams playing the AFC east on way to the Superbowl. Each year the quality of opponents and composition of teams changes radically and recent history tells me that trends are just bull s*it.

saintsfan1976

Niners won't win their division next year.

Saint_LB

When you consider the division the 9ers play in, they should be at the top for quite a while...and their defense, if kept intact, is very formidable. JMO, though.

Jamessr

Whats makes you think that? With the teams in the West you could almost crown them Division champs now...
Sorry I'm not a fan of the 49er's but give credit wheres its due.

Srgt. Hulka

I'm just gonna wait till next season, take it one weekend at a time, and when we get to Superbowl XLVII, then I'll hollar bull****. This Saints team was built to break the mold.