Niners defeat defending champions for NFC Wild Card win

PHILADELPHIA – Somewhere along the way in an unexpected playoff season marred by injuries to some of their brightest stars, the San Francisco 49ers were destined to catch up.

Sunday was not that day.

The 49ers, who won 12 games despite playing most of the season without defensive end Nick Bosa (ACL) and linebacker Fred Warner (ankle), among others, have weathered recurring injuries.

San Francisco even ignored a massive offseason roster reset and used doubts about its prospects as fuel. That resolve was tested again Sunday, when George Kittle was gone with a right Achilles injury that kept him out for most of the game and could cost him all of next season as well.

Despite that devastating injury to one captain and another team leader, the 49ers, as they have done so many times this season, kept fighting. Unexpected heroes — like wide receiver DeMarcus Robinson and a much-maligned defense — emerged once again.

Common sense suggests that the magic is destined to run out at some point. But these Niners will continue to play with house money, betting on themselves even in the toughest of times.

With Sunday’s 23-19 win over the Philadelphia Eagles, the Niners will travel to Seattle for next weekend’s NFC Divisional Round. The deck will be stacked against them again.

But as long as these Niners keep playing, it wouldn’t be wise to count them out.

San Francisco 49ers

What to do with QB performance: Without their top pass rushers, San Francisco needed quarterback Brock Purdy at his best. What the Niners got was a mixed bag that included some key misses but big deliveries when it mattered most.

Trailing 19-17 with eight minutes to go, Purdy engineered a drive that ended with him evading pressure and hitting McCaffrey for a 4-yard touchdown to give the Niners a 23-19 lead with 2:54 remaining.

Earlier, Purdy made some crucial shots to get the Niners moving and made some plays with his legs, but he also tried to make too much at times.

The latter led to him throwing his first two interceptions of the postseason, ending two drives, in which Purdy finished 18 of 31 for 262 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Most surprising performance: Wide receiver DeMarcus Robinson. Already without receiver Ricky Pearsall due to knee and ankle injuries, the Niners also played most of Sunday’s game without tight end George Kittle due to a right Achilles tendon injury.

That left San Francisco in desperate need of someone who could produce in the passing game. Enter Robinson, who reached his season-high for receiving yards in Week 6, when he finished with 44 yards.

But Robinson set the tone on the second play of the game with a catch and run for 61 yards. He finished with easily his best game as a Niner, recording six catches for 111 yards and a touchdown.

turning point: Desperate for a big play, Shanahan delved into his bag of tricks, getting receiver Juwan Jennings — a former quarterback — to take the ball. End around and throw To get back to Christian McCaffrey.

Jennings’ pass initially appeared to be overthrown, but McCaffrey adjusted it and scored for the score. The extra point made it 17-16 with 14:52 left, giving the Niners the lead and offensive momentum they needed to finish strong.

It was the second postseason touchdown pass from Jennings, who also connected with McCaffrey for a 21-yard score against the Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII. Jennings caught his final two touchdown passes by a non-quarterback. — Nick Wagner

Next match: To be determined later

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The defending champions were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, largely due to their offensive inconsistency.

It was a major theme of their season. The defense was one of the best in the NFL and held the Eagles in most games while the offense struggled to find its footing. Fouls were frequent in the second half, and it happened again on Sunday as Philadelphia managed just six points after halftime.

This was a largely winnable game against a San Francisco defense that was badly damaged by injury, but it required the Eagles’ offense to raise their level of play to match the 49ers’ firepower.

Attention will immediately turn to the future of first-year point guard Kevin Pattullo after the highest-paid offense in the NFL took a step back.

QB Performance: Jalen Hurts went 20 of 35 for 168 yards and a touchdown. He played without turnovers, which has been a big part of the Eagles’ winning formula during the Nick Sirianni era, and this year in particular, but Hurts and the offense lacked steam for most of the game. A completion to tight end Dallas Goedert on fourth-and-5 late in the game kept hope alive, but the Eagles’ final attempt ended just outside the red zone.

Statistics to know: All-Pro cornerback Mitchell was without a career interception in 32 regular-season games, but he has four in the postseason, including a pair off Brock Purdy in the second half on Sunday. Mitchell moved into a tie with Brian Dawkins for most Eagles postseason interceptions and only Herm Edwards’ interceptions (5) in that category.

Direction to watch: Tight end Dallas Goedert continues to deliver in the red zone. He had a pair of touchdowns, one of which came on a drive to open the scoring for Philadelphia. It was the first postseason rushing touchdown by a tight end in NFL history, according to ESPN research. The impending free agent finished with 13 touchdowns this season, breaking his previous high. — Tim McManus