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The No. 2 seed 49ers (13-4-1) defeated No. 1 seed Falcons (14-4) 28-24 in the NFC Championship Game in Atlanta to advance to Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans. It marked the sixth consecutive NFC Championship Game to be decided by seven points or fewer, the longest streak in conference championship game history.

The past six NFC Championship Games to finish within seven points or fewer

Season	Teams	Winner	Final Score
Source: NFL
2007	N.Y. Giants at Green Bay	N.Y. Giants	23-20*
2008	Philadelphia at Arizona	Arizona	32-25
2009	Minnesota at New Orleans	New Orleans	31-28*
2010	Green Bay at Chicago	Green Bay	21-14
2011	N.Y. Giants at San Francisco	N.Y. Giants	20-17*
2012	San Francisco at Atlanta	San Francisco	28-24

 

Postseason Success

The 49ers advance to their sixth Super Bowl with the 28-24 victory over Atlanta and now tie the Denver Broncos (6) for the fourth-most Super Bowl appearances in NFL history.

The 49ers have won all five of their Super Bowl appearances (Super Bowl XVI, XIX, XXIII, XXIV and XXIX) and have the fourth-most postseason wins in NFL history (28).

The teams with the most Super Bowl appearances in NFL history are the Dallas Cowboys (8), Pittsburgh Steelers (8), New England Patriots (7), Denver Broncos (6), San Francisco 49ers (6) while four other teams are tied with 5.

 

Winning Formula

San Francisco head coach Jim Harbaugh has compiled a 27-8-1 (.764) record in his first two seasons (including postseason), leading his team to two NFC West titles, consecutive NFC Championship Games and a Super Bowl berth.

Harbaugh became the fifth head coach since 1970 to reach the conference championship game in each of his first two seasons, joining Don McCafferty, Rex Ryan, George Seifert and Barry Switzer.

With the 49ers win over Atlanta on Sunday, Harbaugh (27) tied STEVE MARIUCCI (27) for the third-most victories by a head coach in his first two seasons in NFL history (including playoffs).

The NFL head coaches to reach the conference championship in each of their first two seasons since 1970

Coach	Team	Seasons
Source: NFL *Won Super Bowl
Jim Harbaugh	San Francisco	2011-2012
Rex Ryan	N.Y. Jets	2009-2010
Barry Switzer	Dallas	1994-1995*
George Seifert	San Francisco	1989*-1990
Don McCafferty	Baltimore	1970*-1971

 

NFL head coaches with the most wins in their first two seasons in NFL history (including playoffs):

Coach	Team	Seasons	Wins (Including Playoffs)
Source: NFL *Active
George Seifert	San Francisco	1989-1990	32
Barry Switzer	Dallas	1994-1995	28
Jim Harbaugh	San Francisco	2011-2012	27*
Steve Mariucci	San Francisco	1997-1998	27
Jim Caldwell	Indianapolis	2009-2010	26
Mike Martz	St. Louis	2000-2001	26

 

San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick led the 49ers to a 28-24 win over Atlanta and has a 7-2 career record as a starter, including the postseason.

With Kaepernick starting on Sunday, San Francisco became the first team since WASHINGTON in 1986-1987 (JAY SCHROEDER in 1986; DOUG WILLIAMS in 1987) to start different quarterbacks in consecutive conference championship games. Nine teams have started different quarterbacks in consecutive conference championship games since the merger.

With the start, Kaepernick (seven) tied PAT HADEN (seven) for the fourth-fewest regular season starts by a starting quarterback in an NFC-AFC Championship Game. JEFF HOSTETLER of the New York Giants only had four regular season starts before the 1990 NFC Championship Game.

The quarterbacks with the fewest regular-season starts entering an NFC-AFC Championship Game

Quarterback	Team	Season	Regular-Season Starts	Championship Game Result
Source: NFL
Jeff Hostetler	N.Y. Giants	1990	4	Won 15-13 at San Francisco
Shaun King	Tampa Bay	1999	5	Lost 11-6 at St. Louis
Vince Ferragamo	L.A. Rams	1979	5	Won 9-0 at Tampa Bay
Pat Haden	L.A. Rams	1976	7	Lost 24-13 at Minnesota
Colin Kaepernick	San Francisco	2012	7	Won 28-24 at Atlanta

 

 

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