Super Bowl LIII: The storied history of Los Angeles vs. Boston

FOXBORO, MA - DECEMBER 04: Jared Goff #16 of the Los Angeles Rams greets Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots after the New England Patriots defeated the Los Angeles Rams 26-10 at Gillette Stadium on December 4, 2016 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images) /

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Jed Jacobsohn /Allsport – Super Bowl LIII /

The 1990s

Zero Matchups

The ’90s were a nadir for both LA and Boston sports teams in terms of rivalry and individual successes. The cities combined to send their teams to just three title games and combined to go 0-3.

Teams from both sides hit rock bottom, losing the superstars that made the ’80s so great. Both the Lakers and Celtics failed to win titles, with the Celtics missing the NBA Finals altogether in the decade for the first time since the 1940s.

The biggest blow for LA came in the NFL as they lost both Rams and Raiders, meaning there would be no NFL in Los Angeles for the first time since 1946. Boston almost lost the Patriots to Hartford, Connecticut after the team was bankrupted and they also weathered a terrible scandal when players sexually harassed a female reporter.

By the end of the decade, thanks to the new ownership of Robert Kraft, the Patriots had begun a climb to relevance.

Both the Dodgers and Red Sox had periods of mediocrity as neither teams came close to a World Series title.

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