NFL Playoffs 2012: NFC Title Game Between 49ers and Giants Will Be One for Ages

Step aside, New Orleans Saints. Pack it in, Green Bay Packers.

It's time for the New York Giants and the San Francisco 49ers to renew their long-dormant postseason rivalry in the NFC Championship Game, with a surprise spot in Super Bowl XLVI.

Sunday's game will mark the eighth playoff meeting between these two storied NFL franchises, with the Niners currently owning a 4-3 advantage all time. These two last met in the postseason back in 2003, when Jeff Garcia led Steve Mariucci's Niners all the way back from a 24-point deficit for a thrilling 39-38 win. That game that will long be remembered for the botched snap on what would've been a game-winning field goal for New York.

Prior to that thriller at Candlestick Park, Big Blue and the Niners were known for their seemingly annual renewal of animosities during the 1980s and early 1990s, with Bill Parcells guiding the likes of Phil Simms and Lawrence Taylor against the Bill Walsh and George Seifert squads, helmed by Joe Montana and Steve Young.

The important part of the rivalry dates back to 1981, when the 49ers came away with a 38-24 divisional round victory at The Stick on the road to the first Super Bowl title in franchise history. Joe Montana was his usual brilliant self, throwing for 304 yards and two touchdowns, while Ronnie Lott picked off Scott Brunner twice.

The 49ers triumphed again when they met the G-Men three years later, with Montana, Lott and Dwight Clark once again carrying the day and Harry Carson accounting for New York's lone touchdown. The Niners would go on to demolish Dan Marino's Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl XIX.

The Giants seized control the following two years to even the rivalry at two wins apiece. New York came away with a 17-3 wild-card win in 1985 amidst its first home playoff game since 1962 and was subsequently crushed by the eventual-champion Chicago Bears in the divisional round. Montana and the Niners were able to rack up yards, but struggled to score while Phil Simms led the charge for the G-Men.

Big Blue came back as the top seed in the NFC the very next season and humiliated San Fran, 49-3, thanks in large part to four Phil Simms touchdowns, a dominant defensive performance and a mysterious fumble on what would've otherwise been an easy trip to the end zone by Niners receiver Jerry Rice. Those Giants ended up rumbling to snag their first Vince Lombardi Trophy by way of a 39-20 trouncing of John Elway's Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXI.

After a four-year hiatus, New York came back to end San Francisco's bid for a third consecutive Super Bowl title in a classic 15-13 defensive battle in the NFC Championship Game, capped off by a Roger Craig fumble that set up the winning field goal for Big Blue. The Giants moved on to face the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXV, snagging the Big Tuna his second championship in a game that will forever be remembered for two words—Wide Right.

Steve Young's first and only foray into the postseason rivalry came in January of 1994, though he was hardly the star of San Francisco's 44-3 throttling of New York. Ricky Watters hogged the headlines with his NFL-postseason-record five touchdowns while the defense intercepted Phil Simms twice and limited the Giants to just 41 yards rushing.

As for Giants vs. Niners IIX? Expect an instant classic between two vastly improved quarterbacks (Eli Manning and Alex Smith), two fiery head coaches (Tom Coughlin and Jim Harbaugh) and two defenses that like to set the tone.

Oh, and plenty of flashbacks from the folks at FOX.

Follow @J0shMart1n