The Rams-49ers rivalry is about to get spicy

Rivalries make sports great. There’s nothing like friendly — and oftentimes not-so-friendly — competition.

And the Niners have a new archrival.

Yes, to most, the Seahawks are the 49ers’ top rival — that hatred runs deep. But there is something brewing between the 49ers and the Rams that cannot be ignored.

And it boiled over this weekend, when the Rams traded for Matt Stafford, outbidding several teams, including, reportedly, the 49ers.

From the outside, acquiring Stafford looks simply like a play to improve the Rams’ Super Bowl chances for next year.

But from my vantage point, it was the rivalry with the 49ers that convinced LA to make the move.

The Rams are dead serious about this rivalry with San Francisco. Former Kyle Shanahan protégée Sean McVay is tired of losing to his teacher, so his team hit hard this offseason by making a huge upgrade at quarterback, cost be damned. Now, it’s the 49ers’ turn to hit back. They cannot rest on their laurels. History won’t help them moving forward. The paradigm has changed. These are not the “same old sorry Rams”.

Yes, I know that in the last two seasons, the 49ers are 4-0 against the Rams.

And, from the Rams’ perspective, some of the losses were embarrassing. They were wake-up calls that while LA was good, it weren’t good enough, specifically at quarterback.

In 2019, the 49ers ran over the Rams in the LA Coliseum in Week 6, with red-and-gold fans taking over the old, venerable bowl, forcing LA to go to a silent count at home.

And when the Rams wanted revenge on Saturday Night Football in Santa Clara 10 weeks later, the 49ers won again, despite the fact that Jimmy Garoppolo was sacked six times and Jared Goff wasn’t sacked once.

This year, the Rams, with one of the best defenses in the NFL and a full stable of offensive weapons, again lost to the Niners in Week 6, despite the fact that Garoppolo was playing on a not-quite-healed ankle. He dinked and dunked and handed off his way to victory.

A few weeks later, the Rams lost again. This time Nick Mullens outplayed Goff. That was unforgivable.

A better quarterback flips at least one of those two games a season in the Rams’ favor.

And if the Rams had a better quarterback this season, they probably would have been the favorites in the NFC, too.

It’s not a stretch to put those two truths together. That’s why Goff and some Rams draft picks are now in Detroit and Stafford is moving to the West Coast.

The Rams are using the 49ers as their measuring stick. They think if they can beat the Niners, they can compete for a championship. I think they’re right.

It wasn’t long ago the Niners felt the same way. That Week 6 win over the defending NFC Champion Rams in 2019 was a coming-out party for the Niners that season — a big-time confidence boost.

So the Niners need to return the favor to the Rams and pinpoint their focus on beating the team that I would argue is the NFC favorite in 2021.

Is San Francisco still good enough to beat the Rams, who, let’s not forget, have the NFL’s best defender (Aaron Donald), arguably the NFL’s best cornerback (Jalen Ramsey), a great left tackle (Andrew Whitworth), a slew of high-end skill position players, and now a top-10 quarterback in a system that maximizes talent?

Maybe.

After all, the Niners defense might have a mess of free agents, but it should still be one of the better units in the NFL next season, and they have an elite pass rusher, linebacker, left tackle, tight end, and a slew of high-end skill players.

That, plus that pesky little-brother complex that the Rams need to prove they’ve overcome, might be enough. In which case, the Niners should be one of the NFC’s best teams next year.

But perhaps the quarterback disparity — and I believe there is a noticeable one between these two teams now — pushes this matchup of worthy adversaries towards the Rams.

LA has been aggressive in building its football team: The Rams are likely to go two presidential terms without making a first-round pick. Meanwhile, the 49ers have been conservative.

And with a disparity like that, the Niners brass needs to be certain in their conviction that they still have a better team than their worthy adversary to the south.

Because playing it safe and finishing in second place to your top rival? Well, that doesn’t play in this market.