As thrilling as the games turned out to be, the NFL's championship weekend did produce one intense disappointment: The world won't get to see any more of San Francisco's bone-rattling defense.

Before we join the rest of the sports media in a two-week all-you-can-eat prediction buffet ahead of the upcoming Super Bowl between the New England Patriots and New York Giants, we've allowed ourselves a moment to look back. And after rewinding the film and watching it without any adrenaline to threaten our objectivity, it became...