San Francisco 49ers vs Philadelphia Eagles summary: score, stats, highlights | NFL Conference Finals
Eagles defeat Niners to head to Super Bowl LVII
Eagles defeat Niners, head to Super Bowl LVII
The Philadelphia Eagles dominated the San Francisco 49ers 31-7 in the NFC Championship game to move on to Super Bowl LVII. There, they'll face the winner of the AFC Conference final, either the Cincinnati Bengals or the Kansas City Chiefs on February 12 in Glendale, Arizona.
Do the 49ers have a QB curse??
The Niners, already working with their third string quarterback Brock Purdy (sounds bad on paper, but actually a great QB), suffered a huge blow when Purdy sustained an injury to the elbow in the first half. Fourth string QB JoshJohnson came in but eventually he got injured too, leaving the field with a concussion after knocking his head hard on the turf in the beginning of the 2nd half. Their next option would have been running back ChristianMcCaffrey to take the snaps, but instead the Niners just cautiously put Purdy back in but played conservative with him.
Eagles domination
Even despite the Niners' bad luck at QB, the Eagles just plain dominated in today's NFC Championship game. They had four rushing touchdowns, two by Miles Sanders, one by Boston Scott, and one by Jalen Hurts. The Jake Elliott field goal from 31 yards added 3 more points to put the Eagles ahead with the final score of 31-7.
Scuffle on the field
At the end of the 4th quarter, two players were ejected after a scuffle broke out on the field between the two teams. 49ers OT TrentWilliams grabbed Eagles safety K'VonWallace by the shoulder pads and pulled him down to the ground, leading to their disqualification for the rest of the game.
There were several players on the field involved in the scuffle, which started after Niners WR Deebo Samuel fumbled the ball and Eagles safety Reed Blannkenhsip recovered it.
Eagles in Super Bowl LVII
The Eagles are heading to the Super Bowl for the fourth time in their franchise history. The last time was in 2017 when they won Super Bowl LII against the New England Patriots. They'll try to make it two franchise Super Bowl wins on February 12 when they head to Super Bowl LVII to face either the Bengals or the Chiefs.
Our own Dane Arlauckas is bringing you all the live action from that game. Follow along here!
If you're already wondering how you're going to be able to watch Super Bowl LVII on TV or online, AS USA's William Allen has the lowdown.
It's official!
Eagles are heading to Super Bowl LVII
And the Eagles take the knee to run out the clock...and they are headed to the Super Bowl!!!
On 4th and 2, the Eagles go for it and Gainwell gets it on a 6-yard gain
TWO-MINUTE WARNING
The Eagles got the ball back on a fumble recovery and let the clock wind down to the 2-minute warning on 4th down.
With 2 minutes left, the Niners are down 31-7, which means the Eagles are just a few minutes away from officially heading to the Super Bowl.
Scott takes it up 4 yards to bring Eagles to 4th down. They let the clock tick to the 2-minute warning.
Scott takes it 5 on 1st down but then loses a yard after he's taken down by Greenlaw, 3rd and 6
Samuel gets nowhere and then FUMBLES the ball which is then RECOVERED by EAGLES' Blankenship who takes it 38 yards to the Niners 31.
Good grief.
Two players ejected from game
Unnecessary Roughness calls on both teams and Eagles' Wallace and Niners' Williams were both disqualified
Officials call both teams to the sidelines after the players started fighting on the field and the flags were thrown all over the field
FIGHT!
McCaffrey takes it up short of the 1st down anndddddd now the players are all fighting on the field!!
Purdy is back in again, but his pass to Kittle is only good for a yard, and the Niners are at 3rd and 9
This time the ball is snapped directly to McCaffrey, but his pass deep was incomplete
Samuel makes another big run of 37yards to the Niners 31!
Well, I was definitely wrong when I predicted this wouldn't be a blowout by the Eagles. But who knew the Niners would be in such bad shape? Their defense (in their defence), has been doing a lot to keep them from getting more dominated than they are. The Eagles lead by a landslide in the 4th quarter after Elliott makes the 31-yard field goal with 5:17 still to go.
Elliott 31-yard field goal is GOOD!
And 2 more yards back as Gainwell is tackled down by McGill at the Niners 13.
Gainwell takes 3 yards back and 6 yards forward, Eagles at 3rd and 7
Niners' Greenlaw gets UnnecessaryRoughness call, 14 yards gives Eagles automatic 1st down
Gainwell stopped again, this time by Omenihu for a loss of 2, 3rd and 12 Eagles
This time Armstead stops Gainwell right away, 2nd and 10
Gainwell gets the 1st down and then some with 12 yards!
Eagles' Dickerson was injured on the play
Gainwell takes it to the 40, 2nd and 7
The Niners go for it, cause why not?
The attempt was in vain. Samuel gets buried by Cox and Maddox for a loss of 4. Eagles will get the ball back at the Niners 43.
McCaffrey is taken down by Quinn to bring Niners to 4th and 2
A couple of short gains brings Niners to 3rd down again with 5 yards to gain
McCaffrey picks up the 1st down at the Niners 39
Purdy is in at QB, hands it off to McCaffrey for a gain of 3.
Eagles' Sweat gets Holding Call, 5 yards
Purdy is in at QB, hands it off to McCaffrey for a gain of 3.
Eagles' Sweat gets Holding Call, 5 yards
END 3RD QUARTER
That takes us to the end of the 3rd quarter. McCaffrey just took the ball up 4 yards for a 1st down at the Niners 28 when we return to the 4th.
Injury Update on Johnson
Johnson is officially out with a concussion
Purdy's status remains questionable...
Samuel takes back the punt return 28 yards but Niners' Woerner gets a Holding call for a 10-yard loss at the Niners 25.
With 43 seconds left in the 3rd quarter, the Eagles made another rushing touchdown. this time by QB Hurts for a yard. The penalties on the Niners helped them along the long journey, 15 plays, 91 yards, seven minutes, 50 seconds.
EAGLES TOUCHDOWN!
The Eagles go for the QB sneak again and this time it's enough! Hurts gets over the line and it's good enough for the TD!
Scott takes it up 2, Hurts takes it up 1 on the QB sneak
Anddddd the Eagles are at 3rd and goal
Niners get another penalty, Unnecessary Roughness on Hufanga
Eagles at 1st and goal
Hurts gets away yet again! He takes it up for the 1st down and then some! 14 yards to the Niners 7!
Hurts scrambles away again for a couple yards more
Hurts scrambles away for a gain of 12 to the Niners 23, 1st down!
On the punt return, Niners' Mason gets a RoughingtheKicker call.
McCloud had run it back 14 yards and npw the penalty will be enforced at the 50.
Hurts passes deeeeeeeeep and it's NO GOOD as it's Ward again who knocks it away from Watkins, 4th and 6
Hurts pass knocked away by Ward, incomplete and Eagles are at another 3rd down
Hurts tosses the ball away to Gainwell and he runs it up 17yards! 1st down Eagles
Gainwell gets away for 6 on 1st down but is taken back a yard on 2nd down by, you guessed it, Bosa baby.
3rd and 5 Eagles.
Hurts pass to Smith is CAUGHT for the 1st down, 7 yards
Omenihu stops Scott getting far and at 2nd and 9, Hurts scrambles out of the pocket for a gain of 6 to bring the Eagles to 3rd and 2
At 3rd and 13, McCaffrey is taken back yet again. He does get a gain but just of 3. The Niners, with no answer at QB at the moment, will punt it back to the Eagles.
Purdy in at QB this time
They hand it off to Samuel but Johnson is all over him, loss of 4, 2nd and 14
Hurts throws deep, way too long after Ward covers Brown yet again and the Eagles are held to 4th and 7.
They'll punt it back.
Niners defense are doing what they can, bring Eagles to 3rd and 7...
Johnson is off the field after a hit to the head. He is the Niners' 4th string QB. If he comes out and Purdy can't come in, the Niners will have to rely on Christian McCaffrey at the QB position.
They hand it off to McCaffrey and he's stopped by Edwards after 4. Niners punt it back on 4th down.
Purdy takes over at QB
Johnson is off the field after a hit to the head. He is the Niners' 4th string QB. If he comes out and Purdy can't come in, the Niners will have to rely on Christian McCaffrey at the QB position.
Johnson's pass NEARLY intercepted by Slay but he bobbled it and Niners are safe but it's still an incomplete, 3rd and 14. Better than an interception, but not great.
At 1st and 15, Johnson gets it to McCaffrey, but Gardner-Johnson stops him right away and he gets just a yard, 2nd and 14
Niners get another Delay of Game penalty
Kittle makes the catch, spins away and takes it up for a total of 22 yards for a much-needed Niners 1st down!
Johnson is still in at QB. On the 1st down, Sweat tackles McCaffrey for a loss of 3 followed by an incomplete pass.
Niners are taken to 3rd and long real quick here to start the 2nd half.
And we're back!!
Elliott kicks 65 yards from Eagles 35 to end zone, Touchback
Niners will start us off on offense
There's that last TD by the Eagles before the half
END FIRST HALF
Samuel took the pass from Johnson up 13 yards but that takes us to the end of the first half. The Niners will start us on offense in the 2nd half.
Big run by McCloud! He takes the punt return back 41 yards to the Niners 39!!
The Eagles maximize on another Niners turnover by making a second consecutive touchdown. This time it's Scott who runs it in 10 yards. Instead of going for 2, they make the extra point and the Eagles are up by two scores with 14 seconds in the half.
Elliott's PAT is GOOD!
Eagles take 2nd timeout
Eagles lining up to go for 2...
TOUCHDOWN EAGLES!!
Scott ran it in 10 yards!
Hurts hands it off to Scott who gets out of bounds but Greenlaw was clearly pulling his facemask and they get the penalty, 10 yards enforced at the Niners 20.
1st and goal Eagles
Hurts hits Goedert for 5 yards twice in a row to get the 1st down and they'll try to get some more points on the board before the half...
Uh-ohhhh! JohnsonFUMBLED, he just dropped it on the snap for seemingly no reason and it was kicked and then RECOVERED by the EAGLES - none other than Reddick to the Niners 31.
Johnson throws it to Samuel and it is caught for 11yards and the 1st down right off the bat
Miles Sanders gets his second TD of the day on a 13-yard run to put the Eagles ahead with just a minute 36 to go in the first half. The Niners' many penalties helped them get down the field and Sanders had a few good runs before the TD. Elliott topped it off with the PAT and the Eagles are up by a score over the Niners.
Sanders' second TD of the day
EAGLES TOUCHDOWN!!!
Sanders runs it in 13 yards!
Penalties are killing the Niners, they get another, IllegalContact call on Ward. Gives the Eagles 5 yards after Hurts had thrown an incomplete pass.
TWO-MINUTE WARNING
With two minutes to go, the Niners and Eagles are tied up 7-7. The Eagles have the ball at the Niners 24 on 1st down.
Gainwell again finds the hole and takes off for 17yards to Niners 24!
And it's Gainwell again for the 1st down for 4 yards!
Gainwell picks up 9 yards to make it 3rdand2 at the Niners 45
Hurts gets SACKED for a loss of 2 but the Niners' McGill gets an IllegalUseofHands call to give Eagles another 1st down.
They respond with a penalty of their own, FalseStart on Eagles' Seumalo, 1st and 15 at the Eagles 47
Hurts under pressure trying to set up a screen but he ends up having to throw it away, incomplete
Pass Interference on Niners' Ward, gives Eagles the automatic 1st down
Hurts pass is nearly intercepted but there's a flag on the play...
Sanders gets 4, Hurts incompletion deep to Smith but Ward was all over him, brings Eagles to another 3rd down and 6
At 4th and 1, Hurts takes the sneak and this time they get the 1st down!
Ufff and they get just 1 on a run by Hurts, tackled just short by Omenihu
Eagles back on offense
Sanders gets 4 yards, then 4 again to bring up another 3rd down, but this time they just need 2
The Niners have had bad luck with Purdy out and their 4thstringQBJohnson in, but they manage to tie up the game with 8:29 to go in the half. McCaffrey broke through on a 23-yard run to get the TD and Gould's PAT was good to go.
6 plays, 46 yards, 2 minutes, 46 seconds
NINERS TOUCHDOWN!!
McCaffrey breaks the tackle and runs it in 23yards!
Johnson under pressure from Graham, throws it away for 2nd and 10
Johnson pulls the QB sneak and gets 2 yards for the 1st down at the Phily 23
Johnson under pressure gets it away to McCaffrey and he bobbles it but gets control and gets away juuust short of the 1st
Johnson hands it to McCaffrey and he gets away 9 yards, then takes it 3 more on the next play to give Niners the 1st down at the Eagles 34
Kern's punt went 53 yards to the Niners 45 and McCloud took it up another 9 yards to the Eagles 46.
Hurts throws it over Brown's head. The Niners defense has stopped the Eagles again! They punt it away again at 4th and 15 from their own endzone.
Hurts SACKED by Bosa for a loss of 3, just barely gets out of the end zone! 3trd and 15
Handoff to Sanders goes nowhere, Greenlaw stops him for a loss of 1. Eagles are way back at their own 5 at 2nd and 11
Another look at that "catch'
Josh Johnson has played for FOURTEEN teams in his 15 year NFL career, and that's a record. Here's more on Purdy's replacement.
These small things make a big difference...
SF not only doesn't get the pass - it's incomplete to Kittle - but they also get an IllegalFormation call on Williams. They punt away at 4th and 20.
Johnson SACKED again, this time by Hargrave for a loss of 5, 2nd and 20
Niners get Delay of Game penalty, 1st and 15 at Philly 34
Purdy elbow injury
UPDATE on PURDY: Elbow injury rather than wrist as initially thought. He's not been ruled out, but will continue to update as game progresses...
Johnson hands off to McCaffrey and he takes it up 7 yards up the middle inside the 35
END 1ST QUARTER
That takes us to the end of the 1st quarter. Lots of drama here. Purdy is injured for the Niners, Eagles offense was penalized after the ball maaaybe? hit the wire on the punt return.
Niners have the ball at the Philadelphia 41 after a 9 yard run by Samuel, 2ndand1 to start of the 2nd.
Illegal Use of Hands on Eagles' McPhearson but they are saying the kick hit the wire on the ceiling, which would anull this penalty...
No luck, penaltyremains. There's not enough detail to tell if the ball hit the wire or not.
Hurts goes deep but the pass was overthrown and Brown can't get to it. Eagles will punt at 4th and 9.
Eagles take 1st timeout
The Niners defense is doing the work while Purdy is out, Eagles at 3rd and 9 after Warner makes a big stop on Hurts
Brown takes it down and gets away, 1st down Eagles right away
After the punt was downed by Gray, there was an UnnecessaryRoughness call on Eagles' Jobe, 14 yards
Johnson hands it off to McCaffrey and he takes it up 16 yards but that's still not enough. Niners will punt it away.
Niners at 3rd and 20...ouchy
Niners get Delay of Game penaty
Not a good start, he's SACKED by Reddick on 2nd down for a huge loss of 9 yards
Josh Johnson in at QB for the Niners as Purdy is out with the wrist issue
On the fumble, Purdy's wrist went backwards a bit too much on the hit and doctors are having a look at it on the sideline.
The Eagles offense can't get the job done though, they're held to 3rd and out and they punt it away this time
Eagles take over at their own 44
Play was REVERSED! Purdy's tackle now a SACK and the incompletion now a FUMBLE and PHILLY RECOVERY by Joseph/
Purdy's pass was hit by Reddick that sent the ball flying into the air and it looked like it was picked off by the Eagles, but the officials called it incomplete. Eagles challenged the play as it definitely looks like Purdy threw the ball before it was batted away.
DeeboSamuel is in at backfield and he gets 4 yards
Purdy to Aiyuk for 10 yards and another 1st down!
Offsides call on Philly's Reddick
This time McCaffrey gets it on a 2-yard run, 1st down!
McCaffrey is stopped by Gardner-Johnson for nooo gain, 3rd and 1 Niners
Purdy's first pass is a completion for 9 yards to Kittle
The Eagles took a risk on 4th and 3 and it paid off! After a huge one-handed catch by Smith for 29 yards, Sanders took it into the end zone to finish the job. Elliott's PAT was good to put the Eagles up with 9:48 to go in the 1st quarter.
EAGLES TOUCHDOWN!!!
Sanders walks it in 6 yards and Philly takes the lead!
They go for it, and it is CAUGHT by Smith for 29yards with ONEHAND!!! What a catch by Smith and a huge 1st down conversion for Philly!
Hurts gets it away to Goedert but it's 3 yards short of the 1st down, but they're in field goal range. Do they go for it on 4th or play it safe?
Nick Bosa is at it again with the pressure, Hurts has to throw it away to another 3rd and long. Can they do it again??
No movement on 2nd down brought Eagles to 3rd and 8 and they get a huge conversion by Brown for 10 yards and the 1st down!
Hurts was SACKED on the 1st down by Armstead
Ouch! 49ers' Warner injured on that play. He's down in some pain. Injury time out.
Sanders up the middle and that's a first down for the Eagles. So smooth to start with from them.
Short right to AJ Brown for the first play of the match. Six yards...
Short kick from the 49ers and Scott runs it back for 29 yards to the Eagles' 34 yard line. HERE WE GO!
49ers win the toss and defer!
Eagles are favourites to win this one... so dangerous on offense, either on the ground or going the aerial route. ESPN reckon it's 65.3% win probability for the Eagles.
Anita Baker with the Star Spangled Banner!
Things getting heated over here in Philly already!
The rise of Mr. Irrelevant
Brock Purdy was the last name we expected people to be saying this post season, mostly because no one had ever even heard the name before. Or if they had, they didn't remember it.
By the time Purdy was drafted, everyone had stopped watching. He was picked dead last in the 2022 NFL Draft and was the third string quarterback for the Niners this season. And yet he's gone 7-0 and taken them to the third round of the post season, something only four other rookie QBs have done before him.
How Purdy went from irrelevant to irreplacable
Why has Purdy been so successful? Is he really just that good? Well, yes, but the real key to his success lies in a combination of the coaching, the offense he has to work with, and his calm and collected demeanor.
Kyle Shanahan loaded the offense with weapons and when they do their job well, Purdy doesn't have to do much at all. Purdy has done well to take advantage of these weapons and not only gets the completions but also limits the turnovers - a key difference and something that haunted Jimmy Garoppolo.
Purdy knows how to scramble and get out of the pocket. What would end up in a sack for Jimmy G, ends up in a big play and even scores for Purdy.
49ers vs Eagles Injury Report: All Eagles healthy
San Francisco 49ers Injury Report
There were talks that quarterback JimmyGaroppolo (who hurt his foot in the middle of the season) could maybe make a start in a playoff game instead of BrockPurdy, but he was officially ruled Inactive on Friday.
RB ElijahMitchell and CB AmbryThomaswere listed as Questionable earlier in the week but are now both Inactive. RB TevinColeman and CB JanorisJenkins were elevated from the practice squad and are both active.
San Francisco 49ers Inactives
RB Tyrion Davis-Price
TE Ross Dwelley
QB Jimmy Garoppolo (foot)
DL Drake Jackson
RB Elijah Mitchell (groin)
CB Ambry Thomas (ankle)
OL Nick Zakelj
Philadelphia Eagles Injury Report
The Eagles have all 22 offensive and defensive starters available and active for the game against the Niners now that CB AvonteMaddox is back after injuring his toe on Christmad Eve.
They do still have some injury concerns though. OT LaneJohnson is active, but playing with a groin injury. He seemed a bit uncomfortable last week but played on through it. Quarterback JalenHurts of course was out for two weeks at the end of the regular season with a shoulder injury that he's still dealing with, but he should be a full participant against the Niners today.
Philadelphia Eagles Inactives
QB Ian Book
RB Trey Sermon
S Anthony Harris
LB Kyron Johnson
CB Josiah Scott
OL Josh Sills
Well, he certainly doesn't seem fazed.
No blowouts in Philly today, but they're getting the W
Eagles vs 49ers Prediction
We have an interesting game here this afternoon. It's not easy to predict. The Eagles went 13-4 in the regular season and then blew past the Giants, 38-7 in the Divisional Round. Tonight's game though won't be just another huge blowout game for Philly.
The Eagles now take on a team with a defense just as top tier as theirs, another young quarterback, an offense on par with theirs, and an elitecoach, just like theirs.
San Francisco allowed the fewest yards in the league in the regular season (300.6 yards per game), and the Eagles allowed the second-least (301.5 yards per game).
The Niners have not lost a game since October. With Brock Purdy in at QB, they are 7-0. Under Jalen Hurts, the Eagles are 15-1.
In the end, Purdy is a rookie and has never played in this kind of game before. The Eagles pass rush is going to be what wins them the game against young Purdy. I pick the Eagles for the win, but I don't think the Niners make it easy for them to get.
49ers vs Eagles NFC Championship: QB matchup | Brock Purdy vs Jalen Hurts
One of the biggest storylines of this game is the two quarterbacks. Brock Purdy was a third string rookie who took the Niners deep into the playoffs. Jalen Hurts started as a backup in 2020 and has twice now led his team to the postseason with dreams of the Super Bowl closer than ever.
Read more about these two quarterbacks and how they compare.
Good afternoon everyone and welcome to our live text coverage of the San Francisco 49ers at Philadelphia Eagles NFC Championship game!
The No. 2 Niners defeated the Seahawks and Cowboys to make it to the Conference Final and the top seeded Eagles just had to get past the rivals Giants which proved to be a breeze.
Now they meet Philadelphia's territory at Lincoln Financial Field. Kickoff is at 3 p.m. ET and we will be here to bring you live updates, scores, stats, and commentary throughout the game.