The Detroit Lions head to the Bay Area for the NFC Championship Game on Sunday hoping to avoid the San Francisco 49ers Curse.
Making the Super Bowl may also be important, but a crazy fan theory has spooked the NFL world. Why has the supposed curse gone viral, and does it have legs?
The San Francisco 49ers Curse
A wild theory has surfaced that has gone viral on social media over the last week that involves the 49ers being cursed. Videos about the curse have been viewed millions of times online and have fans speculating what could have been for another QB still in the playoffs.
The 49ers’ curse is that every time a team beats them, that team’s starting QB ends up suffering a season-ending injury.
The theory originated between Week 6 and Week 8 in the 2023 NFL regular season. In Week 6, the 49ers lost 19-17 to the Cleveland Browns. Deshaun Watson suffered a season-ending injury later in the year against the Baltimore Ravens, and Watson required surgery for a broken bone in his shoulder.
It should also be specified before getting carried away that Watson didn’t even play in the game against the 49ers — P.J. Walker did.
Wait a minute… pic.twitter.com/h4PTO1zfNt
— NFL Memes (@NFL_Memes) January 25, 2024
Next, the 49ers faced the Minnesota Vikings in Week 7. The Vikings won the game 22-17, but QB Kirk Cousins went on to tear his Achilles in Week 8 against the Green Bay Packers.
Week 8 arrives, and the 49ers lose again for a third successive week to the Cincinnati Bengals, 31-17. What happens? QB Joe Burrow suffers a season-ending wrist injury a couple of weeks later.
That is all true, but there is also a catch to the theory: The 49ers have to score 17 points.
Watson, Cousins, and Burrow all suffered season-ending injuries after beating the 49ers in a game where San Francisco only scored 17 points.
What makes this even more wild is the 49ers’ result in Week 16. The 49ers lost to the Baltimore Ravens 33-19, but a wild play involving an official stopped the 49ers from ending on 17 points — therefore, obviously, saving the season of Lamar Jackson.
Jackson was scrambling, trying to avoid the 49ers’ pass rushers, and found himself in the end zone. With the 49ers defenders circling, Jackson ran to his left but was shockingly tripped up by an official as he was throwing the ball away.
The ball didn’t have enough on it and fell short of the line of scrimmage, and the play resulted in a safety.
That meant that the 49ers scored an additional two points, and the game ended 33-19. As the theory states, that official and that play must have saved Jackson from a season-ending injury.
If the theory feels far-fetched, that’s because it is.
None of the season-ending injuries happened during the game against the 49ers, but it hasn’t stopped social media from getting carried away.
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