Brock Purdy threw the go-ahead touchdown pass to Christian McCaffrey late in the fourth quarter, San Francisco used a trick play on a TD from wide receiver Jauan Jennings, and the 49ers eliminated the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles with a 23-19 wildcard win on Sunday.
The 49ers head to top-seeded Seattle next weekend for an NFC 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 with it. No matter what happened during the match, good or bad, we just kept trusting each other and we ended up winning.”
Purdy threw for 262 yards and a win on the road in Philadelphia that he failed to achieve 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 on this one by All-Pro cornerback Quinyon Mitchell, but the Eagles scored just three points off turnovers.
The 49ers may head to Seattle without star tight end George Kittle, who was taken off the field with an Achilles injury late in the first half.
The Eagles — who won the Super Bowl on a trick play — were thwarted by one of their own when Jennings punted the ball, 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 19-17 lead.
Philadelphia was once again doomed by a lethargic offensive effort that cost them a chance to repeat as a championship. Super Bowl MVP Jalen Hurts threw for just 168 yards and a touchdown and the Eagles failed to build a 13-10 halftime lead with just 36 total yards in the third quarter on 16 plays. Hurts was incomplete on a fourth-and-11 attempt in the final moments with 43 seconds left that ended their final drive and season.
“Our team is fighting,” 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 were fighting 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 blast late in the first half. Brown tore off his helmet in frustration and screamed in Sirianni’s direction after the Eagles made the drive.