4 hours ago
10
Brock Purdy threw a go-ahead touchdown pass to Christian McCaffrey late in the fourth quarter, San Francisco used a trick play on a TD toss from wide receiver Jauan Jennings, and the 49ers eliminated the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles with a 23-19 wildcard victory on Sunday.
The 49ers head to top-seeded Seattle next weekend for an NFC divisional playoff game. The NFC West rivals split the season series.
“We just focused on one play at a time,” McCaffrey said. “We knew it was going to be a 12-round fight. That’s what we kept saying. We just had to stick to it. No matter what happened during the game, good or bad, we just keep trusting each other and ended up winning.”
Purdy threw for 262 yards and got the road win in Philadelphia he failed to grasp three seasons ago when he was injured in a dismal outing in Philadelphia in a loss in the NFC title game.
Purdy had two passes intercepted in this one by All-Pro cornerback Quinyon Mitchell, but the Eagles scored just three points off the turnovers.
The 49ers may well head to Seattle without star tight end George Kittle, who was carted off the field with an achilles tendon injury late in the first half.
The Eagles – who won a Super Bowl on a trick play – were foiled by one when Jennings was pitched the ball and rolled right and hit McCaffrey on a 29-yard touchdown. The score on the first play of the fourth quarter gave the 49ers a 17-16 lead. The Eagles would only get Jake Elliott’s 33-yard field goal in the quarter for a brief 19-17 lead.
Philadelphia were again doomed by a lethargic offensive effort that cost them a shot at a repeat championship. Super Bowl MVP Jalen Hurts threw for only 168 yards and a touchdown and the Eagles failed to build off a 13-10 halftime lead by totaling only 36 total yards in the third quarter on 16 plays. Hurts was incomplete on a last-gasp fourth-and-11 attempt with 43 seconds left that ended their final drive, and their season.
“Our team fights,” McCaffrey said. “I love this group so much. I don’t have enough good things to say about it. I’m proud to be a part of this team.”
Meanwhile, the Eagles had the wrong kind of fight. Eagles wide receiver AJ Brown had to be separated from coach Nick Sirianni by chief security officer Dom DiSandro during a sideline blowup late in the first half. Brown ripped off his helmet in frustration and yelled in Sirianni’s direction after the Eagles punted to end a drive.
