- Brian Johnson
- news@profootballtechs.com
2023 NFC Championship Game
The Philadelphia Eagles (14-3) will host the San Francisco 49ers (13-4) in the 2023 NFC Championship Game this Sunday at 3 p.m. ET from Lincoln Financial Field. The Eagles won the NFC East Title and look to return to the Super Bowl for the second time in 6 years. The 49ers won the NFC West Title and look to return to the Super Bowl for the second time in 4 years.
Fly Eagles Fly
The Eagles’ ground attack (268 yards) helped propel them in a dominant 38-7 victory over their division-rival New York Giants last weekend. Kenneth Gainwell rushed 12 times for 112 yards and 1 TD. Miles Sanders rushed 17 times for 90 yards. Jalen Hurts rushed 9 times for 34 yards and 1 TD. Boston Scott rushed 6 times for 32 yards and 1 TD.
The Eagles may choose to attack the 49ers through the air this Sunday. The 49ers pass defense ranked 20th in the NFL this season. The Seattle Seahawks managed to throw for 253 yards including 2 TDs in their loss vs the 49ers on Super Wild Card Weekend. DK Metcalf had 10 receptions for 136 yards and 2 TDs. The Dallas Cowboys only managed 206 passing yards with 1 TD in their loss vs the 49ers during the NFC Divisional Round. CeeDee Lamb had 10 receptions for 117 yards.
The Eagles will have two likely candidates to top 100 receiving yards in this game, A.J. Brown (1,496 receiving yards) and DeVonta Smith (1,196 receiving yards). Brown finished the regular season ranked #4 overall in receiving yards. Smith finished the regular season ranked #9 overall in receiving yards.
Faithful to The Bay
The 49ers will be leaning on rookie QB star, Brock Purdy. He is currently undefeated as a starting QB in the NFL. That’s correct, Purdy has gone 7-0 since taking over for the injured Jimmy Garoppolo. Purdy was 18 of 30 for 332 yards and 3 TDs vs the Seahawks in the Wild Card Round. Against Dallas, Purdy was 19 of 29 for 214 yards.
The 49ers will need to pay attention to the pass rush of the Eagles, who ranked #1 overall in team sacks (70) this season. To try to displace the Eagles pass rush, look no further than Christian McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel. McCaffrey has been outstanding since joining the 49ers in October. He has scored a TD in each of his last eight games. Samuel has a total of 10 receptions for 178 yards and 1 TD so far during the playoffs. Samuel has also rushed 7 times for 43 yards.
Even though the 49ers pass defense is ranked 20th overall, their rush defense is ranked 2nd overall (77.7 yards). The 49ers total defense and scoring defense are ranked 1st overall (300.6 yards/game) and (16.3 points/game).
NFC Championship Game Odds and Spread
- Eagles vs. 49ers spread: Philadelphia -2.5
- Eagles vs. 49ers over/under: 46 points
- Eagles vs. 49ers money line: Philadelphia -145, San Francisco +122