Las Vegas Nevada – The San Francisco 49ers led by quarterback Brock Purdy, in a comeback victory, defeated the Detroit Lions 34-31 to claim the NFC Championship and make their first Super Bowl appearance since LIV.
It looked like the Lions would be the champions at halftime as the 49ers trailed by 17 points. San Francisco bounced back as defense stepped up and Purdy guided offense down the field with an evasiveness that Detroit didn’t seem to expect.
“Our guys didn’t want this to be the last day and we had to really fight for it to make that happen, but we pulled it off and I couldn’t be more proud of the group,” said 49ers Head Coach Kyle Shanahan.
Purdy completed 20 of 31 passes for 267 yds. in thegame, threw one touchdown and had one interception.
“He made some big plays with his legs, getting out the pocket, moving the chains on some first downs, getting some explosives,” Coach Shanahan said.
Detroit scored first and led 14-0 at the end of the first quarter. San Francisco awoke in the second quarter as Purdy pushed the team towards goal and handed off to running back Christian McCaffrey for their first touchdown. However, Detroit led 24-7 at the end of the quarter. Shanahan said being down by only 17 points at halftime was encouraging, because “it felt worse”.
“It was nice that we were starting out with the ball in the third, so it gave us some hope in that way,” he said about how they stayed focus.
The score was tied at the end of the third quarter after a field goal by 49ers kicker Jake Moody, a touchdown pass from Purdy to wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk, and another run by McCaffrey. The 49ers defense showed why they were the third best in rush defense in the NFL during the regular season as they kept the Lions from scoring in the third quarter. San Francisco outscored Detroit 10-7 in the fourth quarter.
The 49ers defense will need the same tenacity as they face the Kansas City Chiefs’ quarterback Patrick Mahomes and his go to target tight end Travis Kelce, who broke Jerry Rice’s post season record for the most postseason receptions in league history during the AFC championship game against the Baltimore Ravens. The Chiefs and the 49ers meet at Super Bowl LVIII (58) Sunday, Feb. 11 in Las Vegas at Allegiant Stadium.
