49ers To Face Green Bay Packers In NFC Championship
SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX 5) -- San Francisco 49ers fans are saying, "Bring on the Packers!" ahead of next Sunday's NFC Championship game on their home field.
The Green Bay Packers defeated the Seattle Seahawks 28-23 in their divisional round matchup on Sunday. Chico native Aaron Rodgers will be returning to NorCal to face Jimmy Garoppolo and the rolling Niners.
This marks the eighth time both teams will meet in the postseason since 1995; Green Bay leads the series 4-3.
Rodgers didn't comment on returning to the Bay Area after Sunday's win. In their regular season game, the Niners dominated the Packers, winning 38-7 in November. After that game, Rodgers told Garoppolo, "We'll see you later on."
Aaron Rodgers had a message for Jimmy G after the #49ers beat the #Packers back in November: "We'll see you later on." Rodgers gets his wish. Packers coming to town next Sunday for the NFC Championship Game at Levi's Stadium. pic.twitter.com/LZRAFm0OV5
— KPIX 5 (@KPIXtv) January 13, 2020
"Seven years ago we were here. And I'm reliving it again. And it feels like it's been a long time coming," said Israel Chavez of San Diego.
The Faithful packed Kezar Pub in San Francisco, Sunday afternoon. Seahawks and Packers fans watched with intensity. Green Bay beat Seattle 28 to 23.
"Russell Wilson, hey, he didn't come through today," said Mike Chang of San Francisco.
Many 49ers fans were relieved to see the Packers win since the November win was so one-sided.
"You know they murdered us earlier in the season, so we'll see what happens. I'm going to keep my expectations in check, but I believe, I believe," said Packers fan Justin Cullen of San Francisco.
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Tickets on secondary market for next Sunday's game will not come cheap. On Stubhub, the cheapest ticket for "Standing Room Only" starting at about $500 with fees. The best seats in the house are going for more than $13,000 in the BNY Mellon Club.
Seat Geek reported average ticket prices have risen 14% in the past few days. Would fans be willing to pay triple or quadruple for the NFC Championship?
"Ooh, I would do 4. I personally would do 4. That's how much of a fan I am, I would do 4," said Magana.
"Maybe (triple). I might have to dip into my retirement," said Lopez.
Before Green Bay beat Seattle, KPIX asked fans which team they'd rather see the Niners play.
49ers Fans Willing To Pay Extra For NFC Championship Game Tickets
For Refugio Cortez, there was an urge to see the Niners play the Seahawks, to overcome the stigma of a long losing streak in Seattle and to prove they can beat their rivals yet again.
"I would get over that hump, that we've always been supposedly afraid of them. Seahawks, I want to get over that. We've proven it. And we'll do it again," said Cortez.
"I think honestly it would be easier with Green Bay, because I notice that we do better with conventional quarterbacks, as opposed to ones that scramble a lot," said Gabriel Cortez.
At The Brit in downtown San Jose, in light of the stress on her body during close 49er games, Emily Lopez also thought the team should play the Packers.
At the 49ers store, large crowds packed the sales floor by lunch time. George Kittle jerseys were the hot item, according to the store manager.
"A lot of people are finally realizing that we're not the crappy team that everyone's put us out to be the last couple seasons. We're not pretenders, it's the real deal," said Brook Hill.
The NFC Championship will kick off at Levi's Stadium on Sunday, Jan. 19 at 3:40 p.m.
KPIX 5's Kiet Do and Betty Yu contributed to this report.