Are the 49ers and Ravens destined for Super Bowl XLVII rematch?

Both the 49ers and Ravens are 9-3, hold the No. 2 seed in their respective conferences and have five road wins this season (two of only six teams to do so), but that’s not all they have in common.

Both are led by MVP candidate quarterbacks in Brock Purdy and Lamar Jackson, both have offenses that rank in the top 10 (San Francisco No. 3, Baltimore No. 7) and defenses that rank in the top five (Baltimore No. 2, San Francisco No. 5), and they both rank in the top 10 in takeaways (San Francisco No. 3, Baltimore tied for No. 10) and turnover differential (San Francisco No. 1, Baltimore tied for No. 6).

The 49ers have outscored opponents 352-189. The Ravens have outscored opponents 324-187. They’re the only two teams that have allowed fewer than 200 points this season.

The Ravens are the toughest team left on the 49ers’ schedule, which features two matchups against the Los Angeles Rams (6-6) and one against the Seattle Seahawks, who the 49ers beat 31-13 on Thanksgiving, and the Washington Commanders (4-9).

Conversely, Baltimore has games against the Rams, Jacksonville Jaguars, Miami Dolphins and Pittsburgh Steelers, in addition to the 49ers. Los Angeles doesn’t typically fare well against good defenses like Baltimore’s, and the Jaguars folded in their meeting with the 49ers a few weeks ago (five sacks, four turnovers). 

Though they lost their first meeting with the Steelers thanks to a defensive collapse in the fourth quarter, the Ravens limited them to just 289 yards of total offense and one touchdown. The Ravens are 6-1 since that game. San Francisco notwithstanding, Miami is the only real test left on Baltimore’s schedule.

The 49ers host the Ravens in a Week 16 “Sunday Night Football” matchup on Christmas Day. That game could potentially loom large in determining playoff seeding for both teams, and it could also potentially give fans a preview of what’s to come on Feb. 11 at Allegiant Stadium.