The 49ers are 4.5 point favorites in Atlanta for the NFC Championship Game, making them just the 13th Championship Sunday road favorite (with the largest spread) since 1978:
The 1980-82 Cowboys are one of only four teams to lose three straight conference title games*. Although they are the only team that did not have any of those games at home, they were road favorites in each one.
* The others are the 1973-75 Raiders, the 1974-76 Rams and the 2001-03 Eagles.
Road favorites are 7-5 and they covered the spread in all seven victories.
Just as they did last year, the Houston Texans, seeded third in the AFC, will open the NFL postseason by hosting the sixth-seeded Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday afternoon.
It's the 16th time under the current playoff format (since 1990) that teams have squared off in consecutive postseasons. This includes three instances in which teams played in three straight postseasons and one of four straight years.
The Texans/Bengals matchup is only the second that has come in the same round with the teams seeded exactly the same. The Broncos visited the Colts in the 3/6 AFC Wild Card game in 2003 and 2004, getting blown out in both games. In 1992, 1993 and 1994, the Cowboys and 49ers met as the NFC's top two teams in the conference title game. However, San Francisco was the top seed in the first and third meetings, with Dallas at home in the second.
Houston and Cincy are halfway to the Packers and Niners, who faced each other in the playoffs in 1995, 1996, 1997 and 1998. Prior to 1990, the Steelers and Raiders met in five straight postseasons from 1972-76.
I've listed below each time that teams have met in consecutive postseasons. With five of this January's six AFC entrants having returned to the playoffs, we might have a few more rematches in the coming weeks. Patriots/Ravens could be a divisional round meeting or AFC title game pairing. The Patriots and Broncos are on an AFC championship collision course, but with some big upsets, Ravens/Texans could be the game.
Update: This list is current as of January 13, 2015
Patriots/Colts 2013-14
2013 Divisional IND (4) at NE (2) 43-22 Patriots
2014 AFC Champ IND (4) at NE (1)
49ers/Packers 2012-13
2012 Divisional GB (3) at SF (2) 45-31 49ers
2013 Wild Card SF (5) at GB (4) 23-20 49ers
Patriots/Ravens 2011-12
2011 AFC Champ BAL (2) at NE (1) 23-20 Patriots
2012 AFC Champ BAL (4) at NE (2) 28-13 Ravens
Texans/Bengals 2011-12
2011 Wild Card CIN (6) at HOU (3) 31-10 Texans
2012 Wild Card CIN (6) at HOU (3) 19-13 Texans
Colts/Jets 2009-10
2009 AFC Champ NYJ (5) at IND (1) 30-17 Colts
2010 Wild Card NYJ (6) at IND (3) 17-16 Jets
Chargers/Colts 2007-08
2007 Divisional SD (3) at IND (2) 28-24 Chargers
2008 Wild Card IND (5) at SD (4) 23-17 Chargers
Patriots/Chargers 2006-07
2006 Divisional NE (4) at SD (1) 24-21 Patriots
2007 AFC Champ SD (3) at NE (1) 21-12 Patriots
Patriots/Colts 2003-04
2003 AFC Champ IND (3) at NE (1) 24-14 Patriots
2004 Divisional IND (3) at NE (2) 20-3 Patriots
Colts/Broncos 2003-04
2003 Wild Card DEN (6) at IND (3) 41-10 Colts
2004 Wild Card DEN (6) at IND (3) 49-24 Colts
Raiders/Jets 2001-02
2001 Wild Card NYJ (6) at OAK (3) 38-24 Raiders
2002 Divisional NYJ (4) at OAK (1) 30-10 Raiders
Eagles/Bucs 2000-02
2000 Wild Card TB (5) at PHI (4) 21-3 Eagles
2001 Wild Card TB (6) at PHI (3) 31-9 Eagles
2002 NFC Champ TB (2) at PHI (1) 27-10 Bucs
Packers/49ers 1995-98
1995 Divisional GB (3) at SF (2) 27-17 Packers
1996 Divisional SF (4) at GB (1) 35-14 Packers
1997 NFC Champ GB (2) at SF (1) 23-10 Packers
1998 Wild Card GB (5) at SF (4) 30-27 49ers
Patriots/Steelers 1996-97
1996 Divisional PIT (3) at NE (2) 28-3 Patriots
1997 Divisional NE (3) at PIT (2) 7-6 Steelers
Broncos/Jaguars 1996-97
1996 Divisional JAX (6) at DEN (1) 30-27 Jaguars
1997 Wild Card JAX (5) at DEN (4) 42-17 Broncos
Steelers/Colts 1995-96
1995 AFC Champ IND (5) at PIT (2) 20-16 Steelers
1996 Wild Card IND (6) at PIT (3) 42-14 Steelers
Cowboys/Packers 1993-95
1993 Divisional GB (6) at DAL (1) 27-17 Cowboys
1994 Divisional GB (4) at DAL (2) 35-9 Cowboys
1995 NFC Champ GB (3) at DAL (1) 38-27 Cowboys
Cowboys/49ers 1992-94
1992 NFC Champ DAL (2) at SF (1) 30-20 Cowboys
1993 NFC Champ SF (2) at DAL (1) 38-21 Cowboys
1994 NFC Champ DAL (2) at SF (1) 38-28 49ers
Packers/Lions 1993-94
1993 Wild Card GB (6) at DET (3) 28-24 Packers
1994 Wild Card DET (5) at GB (4) 16-12 Packers
Cowboys/Bills 1992-93
1992 Super Bowl XXVIII DAL (2) vs. BUF (4) 52-17 Cowboys
1993 Super Bowl XXVIII DAL (1) vs. BUF (1) 30-13 Cowboys
Here are the pre-1990 playoff rematches:
49ers/Vikings 1987-89
1987 Divisional MIN at SF 36-24 Vikings
1988 Divisional MIN at SF 34-9 49ers
1989 Divisional MIN at SF 30-3 49ers
Bears/Washington 1986-87
1986 Divisional WAS at CHI 27-13 Washington
1987 Divisional WAS at CHI 21-17 Washington
Broncos/Browns 1986-87
1986 AFC Champ DEN at CLE 23-20 Broncos
1987 AFC Champ CLE at DEN 38-33 Broncos
Giants/49ers 1984-86
1984 Divisional NYG at SF 21-10 49ers
1985 Wild Card SF at NYG 17-3 Giants
1986 Divisional SF at NYG 49-3 Giants
Seahawks/Dolphins 1983-84
1983 Divisional SEA at MIA 27-20 Seahawks
1984 Divisional SEA at MIA 31-10 Dolphins
Seahawks/Raiders 1983-84
1983 AFC Champ SEA at RAI 30-14 Raiders
1984 Wild Card RAI at SEA 13-7 Seahawks
Dolphins/Chargers 1981-82
1981 Divisional SD at MIA 41-38 Chargers
1982 Divisional SD at MIA 34-13 Dolphins
Cowboys/Bucs 1981-82
1981 Divisional TB at DAL 38-0 Cowboys
1982 Wild Card TB at DAL 30-17 Cowboys
Cowboys/Rams 1978-80
1978 NFC Champ DAL at LAR 28-0 Cowboys
1979 Divisional LAR at DAL 21-19 Rams
1980 Wild Card LAR at DAL 34-13 Cowboys
Steelers/Oilers 1978-79
1978 AFC Champ HOU at PIT 34-5 Steelers
1979 AFC Champ HOU at PIT 27-13 Steelers
Steelers/Broncos 1977-78
1977 Divisional PIT at DEN 34-21 Broncos
1978 Divisional DEN at PIT 33-10 Steelers
Vikings/Rams 1976-78
1976 NFC Champ LAR at MIN 24-13 Vikings
1977 Divisional MIN at LAR 14-7 Vikings
1978 Divisional MIN at LAR 34-10 Rams
Cowboys/Rams 1975-76
1975 NFC Champ DAL at LAR 37-7 Cowboys
1976 Divisional LAR at DAL 14-12 Rams
Steelers/Colts 1975-76
1975 Divisional BAL at PIT 28-10 Steelers
1976 Divisional PIT at BAL 40-14 Steelers
Steelers/Raiders 1972-76
1972 Divisional OAK at PIT 13-7 Steelers
1973 Divisional PIT at OAK 33-14 Raiders
1974 AFC Champ PIT at OAK 24-13 Steelers
1975 AFC Champ OAK at PIT 16-10 Steelers
1976 AFC Champ PIT at OAK 24-7 Raiders
Dolphins/Raiders 1973-74
1973 AFC Champ OAK at MIA 27-10 Dolphins
1974 Divisional MIA at OAK 28-26 Raiders
Cowboys/49ers 1970-72
1970 NFC Champ DAL at SF 17-10 Cowboys
1971 NFC Champ SF at DAL 14-3 Cowboys
1972 Divisional DAL at SF 30-28 Cowboys
Cowboys/Browns 1967-69
1967 Divisional CLE at DAL 52-14 Cowboys
1968 Divisional DAL at CLE 31-20 Browns
1969 Divisional CLE at DAL 38-14 Browns
Chiefs/Raiders 1968-69
1968 Divisional KC at OAK 41-6 Raiders
1969 AFL Champ KC at OAK 17-7 Chiefs
Packers/Cowboys 1966-67
1966 NFL Champ GB at DAL 34-27 Packers
1967 NFL Champ DAL at GB 21-17 Packers
Bills/Chargers 1964-65
1964 AFL Champ SD at BUF 20-7 Bills
1965 AFL Champ BUF at SD 23-0 Bills
Packers/Giants 1961-62
1961 NFL Champ NYG at GB 37-0 Packers
1962 NFL Champ GB at NYG 16-7 Packers
Chargers/Oilers 1960-61
1960 AFL Champ LA at HOU 24-16 Chargers
1961 AFL Champ HOU at SD 10-3 Oilers
Colts/Giants 1958-59
1958 NFL Champ BAL at NYG 23-17 Colts
1959 NFL Champ NYG at BAL 31-16 Colts
Browns/Lions 1952-54
1952 NFL Champ DET at CLE 17-7 Lions
1953 NFL Champ CLE at DET 17-16 Lions
1954 NFL Champ DET at CLE 56-10 Browns
Browns/Rams 1950-51
1950 NFL Champ LAR at CLE 30-28 Browns
1951 NFL Champ CLE at LAR 24-17 Rams
Browns/Bills 1948-49
1948 AAFC Champ BUF at CLE 49-7 Browns
1949 AAFC Divisional BUF at CLE 31-21 Browns
Cardinals/Eagles 1947-48
1947 NFL Champ PHI at CHI 28-21 Cardinals
1948 NFL Champ CHI at PHI 7-0 Eagles
Browns/Yankees 1946-47
1946 AAFC Champ NYY at CLE 14-9 Browns
1947 AAFC Champ CLE at NYY 14-3 Browns
Washington/Bears 1942-43
1942 NFL Champ CHI at WAS 14-6 Washington
1943 NFL Champ WAS at CHI 41-21 Bears
Packers/Giants 1938-39
1938 NFL Champ GB at NYG 23-17 Giants
1939 NFL Champ NYG at GB 27-0 Packers
Giants/Bears 1933-34
1933 NFL Champ NYG at CHI 23-21 Bears
1934 NFL Champ CHI at NYG 30-13 Giants
The World Series between the Detroit Tigers and San Francisco Giants should be a fun one. It also could be showcasing both of 2012's Most Valuable Player Award winners.
San Francisco catcher Buster Posey is the consensus favorite to take home the award in the National League. The American League race is much more controversial. While Angels center fielder Mike Trout gets my fictional vote (another argument for another time), Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera has had a monster season for the Tigers and is the favorite to nab the honor in the A.L.
That got me wondering...how often have that year's MVPs faced each other in the World Series?
The MVP was first awarded by the Baseball Writers Association of America in 1931. But there were two earlier incarnations of the award. The Chalmers Award was given out from 1911-1914 and the League Award was given out from 1922-1929.
So here are the instances of MVPs squaring off on the ultimate stage:
| Year |
NL MVP |
AL MVP |
World Series |
| 1912 |
Larry Doyle (NYG) |
Tris Speaker (BOS) |
BOS d. NYG |
| 1914 |
Johnny Evers (BSN) |
Eddie Collins (PHA) |
BSN d. PHA |
| 1927 |
Paul Waner (PIT) |
Lou Gehrig (NYY) |
NYY d. PIT |
| 1931 |
Frankie Frisch (STL) |
Lefty Grove (PHA) |
STL d. PHA |
| 1934 |
Dizzy Dean (STL) |
Mickey Cochrane (DET) |
STL d. DET |
| 1935 |
Gabby Hartnett (CHN) |
Hank Greenberg (DET) |
DET d. CHN |
| 1936 |
Carl Hubbell (NYG) |
Lou Gehrig (NYY) |
NYY d. NYG |
| 1939 |
Bucky Walters (CIN) |
Joe Dimaggio (NYY) |
NYY d. CIN |
| 1940 |
Frank McCormick (CIN) |
Hank Greenberg (DET) |
CIN d. DET |
| 1941 |
Dolph Camilli (BKN) |
Joe Dimaggio (NYY) |
NYY d. BKN |
| 1942 |
Mort Cooper (STL) |
Joe Gordon (NYY) |
STL d. NYY |
| 1943 |
Stan Musial (STL) |
Spud Chandler (NYY) |
NYY d. STL |
| 1945 |
Phil Cavarretta (CHN) |
Hal Newhouser (DET) |
DET d. CHN |
| 1946 |
Stan Musial (STL) |
Ted Williams (BOS) |
STL d. BOS |
| 1950 |
Jim Konstanty (PHI) |
Phil Rizzuto (NYY) |
NYY d. PHI |
| 1955 |
Roy Campanella (BKN) |
Yogi Berra (NYY) |
BKN d. NYY |
| 1956 |
Don Newcombe (BKN) |
Mickey Mantle (NYY) |
NYY d. BKN |
| 1957 |
Hank Aaron (MLN) |
Mickey Mantle (NYY) |
MLN d. NYY |
| 1960 |
Dick Groat (PIT) |
Roger Maris (NYY) |
PIT d. NYY |
| 1961 |
Frank Robinson (CIN) |
Roger Maris (NYY) |
NYY d. CIN |
| 1963 |
Sandy Koufax (LAD) |
Elston Howard (NYY) |
LAD d. NYY |
| 1967 |
Orlando Cepeda (STL) |
Carl Yastrzemski (BOS) |
STL d. BOS |
| 1968 |
Bob Gibson (STL) |
Denny McLain (DET) |
DET d. STL |
| 1970 |
Johnny Bench (CIN) |
Boog Powell (BAL) |
BAL d. CIN |
| 1975 |
Joe Morgan (CIN) |
Fred Lynn (BOS) |
CIN d. BOS |
| 1976 |
Joe Morgan (CIN) |
Thurman Munson (NYY) |
CIN d. NYY |
| 1980 |
Mike Schmidt (PHI) |
George Brett (KC) |
PHI d. KC |
| 1988 |
Kirk Gibson (LAD) |
Jose Canseco (OAK) |
LAD d. OAK |
It's happened 28 times, with 25 coming since the inception of the modern award in 1931. 11 of these 25 occurrences happened in the first 16 years (1931-46).
20 of the 25 came before divisional play began in 1969. That makes sense, because when only the league's top team won the pennant, the writers would sometimes give the award to a player on that team, perhaps at the expense of a more deserving player.
Since the start of the LCS era it's only happened five times, with just one coming after 1980. So if Posey and Cabrera do take home their respective league's MVP, it will be very unique for recent times.
The St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants have crawled out of their own graves several times of late, but one will be going home for good after tonight's winner-take-all Game Seven.
The Giants have fought back from 3-1 down to become the 17th team in MLB postseason history to force a seventh game. 11 of the previous 16 finished the job and completed the comeback.
UPDATE: The Giants won Game Seven en route to a World Series sweep and second title in three years. Teams that went from down 3-1 to 3-3 are 12-5 in Game Seven.
Down 3-1, came all the way back
1925 Pittsburgh Pirates (WS)
1958 New York Yankees (WS)
1968 Detroit Tigers (WS)
1979 Pittsburgh Pirates (WS)
1985 Kansas City Royals (ALCS)
1985 Kansas City Royals (WS)
1986 Boston Red Sox (ALCS)
1996 Atlanta Braves (NLCS)
2003 Florida Marlins (NLCS)
2004 Boston Red Sox (ALCS)
2007 Boston Red Sox (ALCS)
UPDATE: 2012 San Francisco Giants (NLCS)
Down 3-1, forced seventh game, came up short
1912 New York Giants (WS)
1967 Boston Red Sox (WS)
1972 Cincinnati Reds (WS)
1992 Pittsburgh Pirates (NLCS)
2008 Boston Red Sox (ALCS)
Of the 12 teams to come back, six of them did it by winning the final two games on the road.
Of the 17 teams to force a Game Seven, eight of them have done it as the Giants have, winning the fifth game on the road before coming home and winning the sixth. Those teams that snatched the momentum are 6-2 in Game Seven.
According to WhoWins.com, this NLCS marks the fourth time that the team hosting Game Seven had gone L-W-L-L-W-W. The 1925 Pirates and 1986 Red Sox completed their comebacks and won the series over the Washington Senators and California Angels, respectively.
The Cards will look to the example set by their 1967 predecessors. St. Louis nearly blew a 3-1 World Series lead to the Red Sox, but Bob Gibson turned in a ten-strikeout complete game (and swatted a home run) for a 7-2 win at Fenway.
Still, squandering a 3-1 lead is a familiar feeling for the Redbirds, as they now account for four of the 12 times it's happened (1968 WS, 1985 WS, 1996 NLCS, 2012 NLCS).
Thanks to their suddenly dormant offense, the New York Yankees have dropped the first three games of the American League Championship Series to the Detroit Tigers and are in a big hole.
The Yanks know something about 3-0 comebacks, but now they need to be on the other end of history to reach the World Series.
Detroit's outstanding starting pitching has led the way and although New York sends CC Sabathia to the hill tonight, the Tigers are still primed for the sweep as Max Scherzer (MLB-leading 11.08 K/9 IP) will get the ball.
In the MLB postseason, how often do teams that hold a 3-0 lead in a best-of-seven series win Game Four and complete the sweep?
UPDATE: I've updated these numbers to reflect the Tigers sweeping the Yanks in the 2012 ALCS and the Giants' subsequent sweep of the Tigers in the World Series.
31 teams have started a series 3-0 to set themselves up for a sweep*. 25 of them finished the job in the next game. Of the six teams that lived to fight another day, half were knocked out in Game Five. The 1998 Braves and 1999 Mets both won Games Four and Five of the NLCS before falling in Game Six. The 2004 Red Sox were the first team to force a seventh game and of course were the first to come all the way back and win it.
* I'm not counting the 1907 Cubs and 1922 Giants, although both are listed as winning their series 4-0. The first game of the Cubs/Tigers Fall Classic was called a tie after 12 innings due to darkness and Game Two of the Giants/Yankees series was also a tie for the same reason through ten innings.
Up 3-0 in the World Series
1914 Boston Braves
1927 New York Yankees
1928 New York Yankees
1932 New York Yankees
1938 New York Yankees
1939 New York Yankees
1950 New York Yankees
1954 New York Giants
1963 Los Angeles Dodgers
1966 Baltimore Orioles
1976 Cincinnati Reds
1989 Oakland Athletics
1990 Cincinnati Reds
1998 New York Yankees
1999 New York Yankees
2004 Boston Red Sox
2005 Chicago White Sox
2007 Boston Red Sox
UPDATE: 2012 San Francisco Giants
1910 Philadelphia Athletics (lost Game Four to the Cubs, won Game Five)
1937 New York Yankees (lost Game Four to the Giants, won Game Five)
1970 Baltimore Orioles (lost Game Four to the Reds, won Game Five)
Up 3-0 in the League Championship Series
1988 Oakland Athletics
1990 Oakland Athletics
1995 Atlanta Braves
2006 Detroit Tigers
2007 Colorado Rockies
UPDATE: 2012 Detroit Tigers
1998 San Diego Padres (lost Games Four and Five to the Braves, won Game Six)
1999 Atlanta Braves (lost Games Four and Five to the Mets, won Game Six)
2004 New York Yankees (lost four straight to the Red Sox, flopped into history books)
With their ace on the mound, I think the Yanks have a good shot at joining the short list of teams to avoid the sweep, even if it's only for a day. Beyond that who knows, but as the '04 Sox can attest, it always starts with one.
