NFL Fact or Fiction: Super Bowl XLVI Will Feature the Steelers and 49ers

 Imagine this, if you will: two of the most storied franchises in NFL history pitted against one another in Lucas Oil Stadium for Super Bowl XVLI. Since the 1970 NFL/AFL merger, the teams would have a combined win total of 666 games, including 11 Super Bowl wins to only two Super Bowl losses.

Having these two teams square off against one another at a chance for another Super Bowl title would create of one of the most timeless competitions in Super Bowl history. 

 If you do not know who these teams are already, they are the Pittsburgh Steelers and the San Francisco 49ers, and each team is trying to write a new page in history with an appearance in Super Bowl XLVI.

The Steelers, coming off of a loss in Super Bowl XLV to the Green Bay Packers, have won six Super Bowls, the last being a victory over the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII. Pittsburgh has been a dominant force this past decade and is looking to keep their momentum going with another appearance in the Super Bowl this year.

Despite a rough start to the season, the Steelers are now 5-2 and looking as though they are legitimate AFC title contenders behind Big Ben and company.

 Contrary to the Steelers, the San Francisco 49ers have been irrelevant as of late (their last Super Bowl came in 1994 over the San Diego Chargers, 49-26), yet they are priming themselves for a run at Super Bowl XLVI.

Like the Steelers, the 49ers also have an impressive Super Bowl record, winning all five of the appearances on the NFL's biggest stage, behind some of the most storied players in NFL history: Steve Young, Joe Montana and Jerry Rice for instance.

Though there are no "big name" stars as in the past, San Francisco is currently sitting at 5-1 and look as though they will run away easily with the NFC West title. 

Currently, San Francisco is rated No. 4 in ESPN's Power Rankings and the Steelers are sitting at No. 5, with the Green Bay Packers, New England Patriots and New Orleans Saints ranked one, two and three, respectively.

With schedules that are fairly conducive to both the Saints and Steelers, is it possible that those two could meet each other on the grandest of stages? Will Super Bowl XLVI feature the Pittsburgh Steelers and the San Francisco 49ers?

Why The Steelers Could Make the Super Bowl:

The Steelers had a bit of a rocky start to their season with a season-opening blowout loss to division rival Baltimore Ravens 35-7 and a loss to the Houston Texans in Week 4, 17-10. They rebounded with three straight wins over the Titans, Jaguars and Cardinals.

While some may argue that none of these teams are exactly impressive, the Steelers have made great strides on both offense and defense that have allowed them to move back up the power rankings and assert themselves as legitimate Super Bowl contenders. 

Featured on the Steelers is a powerful offensive attack that has come together after weathering some difficulty in their first few games. Led by quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and wide receivers Hines Ward and Mike Wallace, the Pittsburgh passing attack amasses an average of 265.4 passing yards per game—ninth in the NFL.

Aiding the Pittsburgh offense that can drive the ball down the field with a developed rushing and passing attack is a very strong defensive corps, led by none other than super safety Troy Polamalu. The Steelers' defense has only been yielding 171.9 yards per game through the air and 107.1 yards per game on the ground—No. 1 and No. 12 in the NFL, respectively.

With a defense like this, the Steelers have been able to contend in all of their games and will continue to do just that as the season progresses and they become more and more comfortable with each other. 

We will learn a lot about how much the Steelers have come back in the next two weeks, as they play the New England Patriots and division foe Baltimore Ravens in successive weeks.

If the Steelers are able to come out of these games triumphantly, they may as well already be crowned AFC Champions, as they would have asserted themselves against the best the AFC has to offer.

After those difficult games, the Steelers have a very interesting game in Week 15 against the San Francisco 49ers, which may just be a preview of Super Bowl XLVI.

Besides the Patriots, Ravens and 49ers, the Steelers don't really have any other games remaining on their schedule that present too much of a threat to the former Super Bowl champions on their quest toward yet another Super Bowl appearance.

All of these factors combined make seeing the Steelers in Super Bowl XLVI not out of the realm of possibilities.

Why the 49ers Could Make the Super Bowl:

Besides the Detroit Lions, the San Francisco 49ers may be the most surprising team in the NFL this season, and established themselves as legitimate after a Week 6 victory over the resurgent Detroit Lions. 

New head coach Jim Harbaugh has instilled a winning mentality to a program that has not had any positives surrounding them recently. With a talented core group of players that have had the potential all along to be great, Harbaugh has tapped into San Francisco's emotions and helped them to burst back onto the NFL scene. 

Alex Smith, once the first-overall pick in the NFL draft, is finally playing like many thought that he could have, becoming the leader the 49ers always wanted him to be. Though they are next-to-last in passing yards per game, Smith is making smart choices and not coughing up games like so many San Francisco fans have become used to in recent times.

Helping Smith to make better decisions and be comfortable leading the 49er offense is a stout rushing attack led by the great Frank Gore, who is averaging five yards per carry and four rushing touchdowns.

Even more impressive is the 49ers' stout defense—second in the NFL against the run—giving up just 74.7 rushing yards per game, something that they will need to continue to do if they want to make a legitimate playoff run come season's end. 

Like the Steelers, the 49ers have around three difficult games left: at home against the New York Giants, on the road against the Baltimore Ravens and at home against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Even if the 49ers do lose more than one of these games, they will most likely reach the playoffs as they play in the NFC West, which is looking absolutely abysmal besides the resurgent Niners.

However, if the 49ers do want to establish themselves as legitimate Super Bowl contenders, they will need signature wins against AT LEAST two of those three aforementioned teams.

Will Super Bowl XLVI Feature the Pittsburgh Steelers and San Francisco 49ers?

To keep this answer short and simple: no.

While both of these teams are very good and I could see the Steelers making an appearance in the Super Bowl and at least an appearance in the AFC Championship against the New England Patriots, San Francisco's playoff road would be too difficult for a still-young team that still has an entire second half of the season to wear down. 

Even if the 49ers do make the playoffs, they would likely have to face at least the Saints or Green Bay Packers, and could potentially have to face both in consecutive games if they wanted to make a Super Bowl appearance.

While they are a good team, they are not yet on the level of the Packers or Saints and need to develop a passing game in order to be considered a true threat in the NFC. If the 49ers were a little more mature and not such a surprise underdog story in a weak division, they may just have a shot at the Super Bowl, but this year, I think not.

So sorry to all of the classic NFL fans who are praying for a clash of two of the NFL's most historic franchises. This just won't happen this year.