The San Francisco 49ers successfully avenged their defeat in the NFC Championship Game in January in Week 13 of the NFL and won the rematch at the Philadelphia Eagles 42:19. Brock Purdy played a sparkling game while Deebo Samuel scored three touchdowns.
49ers @ Eagles: At a glance
- After two scoreless drives to start, the 49ers were unstoppable and scored touchdowns on their following six drives in the game.
- The Eagles lost to an NFC team for the first time this season, having previously only lost to the AFC’s New York Jets. At the same time, the Eagles’ series of four wins in a row ended after halftime deficits.
- Deebo Samuel excelled for the 49ers offense with a total of three touchdowns. In general, Niners coach Kyle Shanahan had a perfect game plan to exploit a major weakness in the Eagles defense.
49ers @ Eagles: The game report
Before the Niners took command, they had two completely ineffective series with a total of minus-6 net yards. However, they then turned things up offensively and scored a touchdown on each of their following four drives in a row.
The Eagles, in turn, began with two long drives, each of which ended with short field goals inside or on the edge of the red zone. The key to the game for the 49ers was that, after the initial problems, they found a way to specifically attack the linebackers – especially Nicholas Morrow – in the passing game, which meant massive mismatches in favor of the guests. Time and time again, the Eagles’ defense had great problems keeping up with the fast receivers after short passes.
Brandon Aiyuk scored the first touchdown after a pass from Brock Purdy, and Christian McCaffrey ran the second over 15 yards 38 seconds before halftime into the end zone. After the break, Deebo Samuel added a two-yard score via end around. The Eagles then rebelled one last time and shortened the lead through Jalen Hurts with a brotherly shove. This followed a scuffle on the Eagles’ sideline after a penalty for unnecessary roughness against linebacker Dre Greenlaw. Greenlaw was then sent off, as was an Eagles security guard, because they both had physical contact with each other.
The Niners’ response: The next touchdown, this time it was a 48-yard catch-and-run by Deebo Samuel that Morrow couldn’t stop shortly after the catch. Then the receiver was up and away. The Niners got a stop and followed up with a punt at 4th&2 in the Eagles half. The receipt for this followed promptly: a fifth touchdown in a row for the guests. This time, Purdy found Jauan Jennings for an 18-yard touchdown to start the fourth quarter.
The Eagles shortened the gap again with a touchdown pass from Hurts to DeVonta Smith – after a drive that Marcus Mariota had started because Hurts had to be checked for a concussion – but the Niners had an answer to that too: a 46-yard touchdown -Catch-and-run by Samuel after a short screen by Purdy.
It was the Eagles’ first defeat in the NFC. Previously they only lost to the Jets from the AFC. That puts them just one game ahead of the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC East. They will be competing against them for the second time this year next Sunday.
San Francisco 49ers (9-3) @ Philadelphia Eagles (10-2)
Result: 42:19 (0:6, 14:0, 14:7, 14:6) BOXSCORE
49ers @ Eagles: Key stats
- McCaffrey scored his 50th rushing touchdown in the first half and also has 27 touchdown receptions. He is only the third running back ever with at least 50 rushing and 25 rushing touchdowns after Hall of Famers Lenny Moore and Marshall Faulk.
- For Samuel it was the second game with a rushing and receiving touchdown. In addition, Samuel now has four touchdown receptions with more than 40 yards after the catch since 2018. That’s tied with Cooper Kupp and Ja’Marr Chase for the second-most in the NFL during that period – only Eagles receiver AJ Brown has more (8). .
- The Eagles had won five games in a row, but were behind four times at the break. This streak also ended Hurts’ streak of five wins when he was at least ten points behind. This was the longest streak since 1950 (along with Joe Montana and Steve Bartkowski).
The star of the game: Brock Purdy (quarterback, 49ers)
After initial problems, Purdy was unstoppable the rest of the way. He played extremely efficiently (0.75 EPA/play) and distributed the ball confidently, especially over short and medium distances. He found the gaps in the Eagles’ zone defense, targeted linebackers and repeatedly found mismatches for which the Eagles had no answer.
The flop of the game: Front Seven (Eagles)
Three QB hits and two sacks were the Eagles defense’s meager output against Purdy, who was otherwise hardly under pressure. The Eagles also allowed 5.2 yards per carry, which is too much even against the Niners. The linebackers in coverage were also the big weak point that Philly couldn’t fill.
The highlight of the game
Deebo Samuel’s 48-yard touchdown catch was the gut punch right after halftime, from which the Eagles ultimately never recovered.