San Francisco 49ers fans may be sick with thoughts of what might have been following the Rams' Super Bowl win Sunday night.
That's justified.
After all, the Niners had owned LA up until they played in the NFC Championship Game.
That could have been the Niners in the confetti Sunday.
But put aside that jealousy or anger for a moment. Let's look forward. And as we do, know that the Rams' win could be the catalyst for their demise.
It's a classic Los Angeles story — the Rams sold out. Or, to put it another way, they pushed all their chips — draft picks and cash — into the middle of the table to win a Super Bowl.
One more forced analogy: They stripped the cupboard bare and hoped that the shine of the Lombardi Trophy would prove distracting enough to guests.
They have that trophy now. It's hard to say it wasn't worth the risk.
But that doesn't mean the risk of that approach has been eliminated.
The Rams have 20 pending free agents. Eight of those players are starters. They're $15 million over the salary cap for next season.
Bringing back key starters — edge rusher Von Miller, cornerback Darious Williams, and three starting offensive linemen for next season — will not be easy. Repeating without them will be even harder.
And replacing them with draft picks? Well, that's going to be tough, seeing as they only have three for next season — a fifth-rounder and two sevenths — with compensatory picks still to be allocated.
A bunch of free agents, few draft picks, and no money? The Rams could be in for a hellacious offseason.
But money might not be the only reason players won't come back to the Rams next year.
Success provides a perfect jumping-off point for many in blue and yellow. These Rams were built for a good time, not a long time — now that they have their title, players (or perhaps coaches) might decide to say goodbye to LA or the game.
We knew that Rams left tackle Andrew Whitworth was going to retire if Los Angeles won the Super Bowl. He's 40, after all. Hell of a career, Big Whit.
But NBC reported an hour before Sunday's game that defensive tackle Aaron Donald — the best player in the NFL — was considering retirement at age 30 if the Rams won.
Well, the Rams won.
That bombshell was dropped amid swirling speculation in L.A. that Rams coach Sean McVay could possibly retire, too, at age 36. If not now, then in the near future. I'd bet on the latter, but it's fascinating nevertheless.
Perhaps it's all just Southern California tabloid fodder — empty nonsense to fill 20 hours of Super Bowl pregame shows — but if the Rams lose their left tackle and Donald, their Super Bowl odds should significantly drop.
And if McVay decides to take big money from Fox or Amazon to become a broadcaster, they'll have to drop off the board.
Meanwhile, the 49ers are getting plenty of love from sportsbooks to win next season's title. The Chiefs and Bills are the odds-on favorites, of course, but the 49ers — at 14-to-1 at most books — are the second-best team in the NFC, behind the Rams, even with Trey Lance as their quarterback.
That's a lot of respect.
But it makes sense to me.
Look around the NFC. Who should be feared? The Rams, for now. Who else?
Not Tampa Bay without Tom Brady. Not the Packers — you can bet on Aaron Rodgers all you want. (And by the way, he's staying.)
Are you in on the Cowboys at 16-to-1 at Caesars Sportsbook?
Actually, the better question here is "do you like burning money?"
The NFC was weak this season and it's going to be weaker next season.
The Niners — even with a young quarterback in tow — should have a strong, generally stable team thanks to Lance's rookie contract. And that team that was minutes away from being in the Super Bowl the Rams won.
Dive even further and you'll see that the NFC West is weaker Monday than it was only a few days ago.
The Rams won the title, but they look the part of a one-and-done. The Seahawks remain in a state of chaos — I thought generational quarterbacks were supposed to get jobs for their coaches, not get them fired.
And boy, are the upstart Cardinals are a mess.
Kyler Murray is going full Gen-Z on the Cardinals, telling them they're no longer besties by being petty on Instagram.
Feel free to bet on that guy and that team next year.
Will the Niners be a better or worse team next season? That's debatable.
But I'm looking at three teams in their division who seem to be trending in the wrong direction.
I'm looking at a conference that will lack a true, bonafide No. 1 next season.
I'm looking at a Niners team that needs to ask the same question every day this offseason:
Why can't that No. 1 team be us?
I'm still looking for reasons why they won't be.
