NFC Championship Game 2012: Giants Will Ruin 49ers' Dream Season

The San Francisco 49ers' dream season and unprecedented run to the brink of a Super Bowl appearance will end on Sunday when the New York Giants beat them at Candlestick Park.

The 49ers played well against the New Orleans Saints in the divisional round, but the Giants are the hottest team in the playoffs right now and are full of confidence after beating the defending champion Green Bay Packers last week.

In the NFL playoffs it's not about how good you are, it's how good are you playing right now. The Giants are playing their best football of the season, and are riding a huge waive of momentum into this game. Their confidence is sky high, and they have no reason to fear the 49ers.

The Giants defense has been amazing in recent weeks at getting to the opposing team's quarterback, and protecting quarterback Alex Smith from New York's relentless pass rush is priority No. 1 for San Francisco on Sunday.

The 49ers allowed four sacks and seven quarterback hits last week to a Saints pass rush that isn't close to being as good as the Giants'.

This is a concern for Smith because Giants pass-rushers such as Jason Pierre-Paul, Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora, are all a threat to sack him on every play if not blocked well.

The Giants made likely NFL MVP and Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers look average last week, which is very difficult to do. Rodgers threw for only 264 yards against the Giants, his fourth-fewest total of the season. He even looked rattled at times in the second half.

The 49ers will not be able to handle the pass rush of the Giants, and this will prevent them from scoring the amount of points needed to win, which should be at least 27 considering how well the Giants passing game is performing.

Against an inferior quarterback in Smith, the Giants pass rush will again be effective and carry them to victory and their first Super Bowl appearance since 2007.