I read a comment on Twitter from a Niner fan thanking the NFL for scheduling the San Francisco 49ers with an extra home game. He was, of course, referring to Sunday's game against the Los Angeles Rams at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. It wasn't really a home game, but from the makeup of the crowd and the chants during the 49ers' 20-7 victory, you would have thought it was.
It's likely a good number of fans traveled from Northern California to see this game. Los Angeles, after all, is just a short plane ride or longer scenic drive (if you take the coastal route) away. But the 49ers also have a strong presence of fans in the areas surrounding Los Angeles.
Remember, for a long time, the area had no NFL team, so the Niner fanbase grew. It is no surprise that there was a good amount of fans in the Rams' home stadium.
"Good amount" probably isn't the right term. There was a lot of The Faithful in the stands.
The players noticed.
You could hear the "Let's go Niners" chants start up in the fourth quarter. The crowd noise made things difficult at times for the struggling Rams offense, which is the opposite of what you might expect for the home team. Especially one which was in the Super Bowl just eight months ago.
"I love that," tight end George Kittle said after the game. "Our fans showed up today. You could feel the entire game, the energy from them. It made it feel like a home game. It's pretty fun because then we go back to Levi's Stadium, and it's popping, and that's going to be really fun too."
The defense was able to feed off the crowd's enthusiasm, too.
"Man, that was a lot of fun," cornerback Richard Sherman said. "The Faithful were outstanding. It felt like a home game. A lot of the times, you look out there, and I'm sure the stadium is used to seeing a sea of red because SC plays here, but I'm sure they're not used to it when the Rams are playing.
"But it was fun. It was great to see our fans come out. They had a great time, they were really loud, they were engaged in the game, and they gave us a lot of energy."
Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo appreciated The Faithful's presence, as well.
"It turned into a home game pretty quickly," he said. "It was loud out there, and we knew it before the game. It's just awesome to see The Faithful travel like that. I've never seen anything like it. It's awesome."
