Defense makes 49ers one-dimensional
PHILADELPHIA >> The entirety of Lincoln Financial Field bobbed up and down in unison early in the fourth quarter.
The Eagles were cruising to a 31-7 win over the San Francisco 49ers for their fourth Super Bowl berth in franchise history and the second in five years.
It was time to dance. “Seven Nation Army” gave way to “Shout” and then an Eagles chant broke out as the music subsided and play resumed.
The Eagles' win was all but wrapped up going into the fourth quarter, giving fans enough time to scope out Super Bowl LVII tickets. Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie and general manager Howie Roseman spent most of the quarter embracing players in celebration, and Jalen Hurts watched the final moments in a jacket while Gardner Minshew took the final knee of the game.
The Eagles are Super Bowl bound.
Here's our instant analysis off the game.
In the biggest game of his young career, DeVonta Smith made his mark early.
The receiver made an improbable one-handed diving catch to keep the Eagles' opening series alive on fourth-and-3, gaining 29 yards and setting up a touchdown two plays later.
It was the type of catch that fans will still remember five years from now when discussing this playoff run and the type Smith has made a habit of making over the past two years.
The Eagles' 11-play, 66yard opening drive was sparked by a strong return from Boston Scott. They faced fourth-and-3 when Hurts surveyed his options and escaped the pocket in search of an opening. Smith, running an outbreaking route, turned upfield and got behind San Francisco slot cornerback Jimmie Ward.
Smith contorted his body for the acrobatic onehander and popped up to signal that the Eagles needed to quick-snap the next play before the 49ers had a chance to see a replay or challenge the catch. Two plays later, Miles Sanders found the end zone on a 6-yard run.
The 49ers' revolving door of quarterbacks made a couple more rotations at the worst possible time.
San Francisco's opening series ended with Haason Reddick's strip sack of quarterback Brock Purdy that left him with an elbow injury.
Purdy, who took over midseason after Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo each suffered seasonending injuries, was sidelined for the rest of the first half in favor of journeyman backup Josh Johnson.
Johnson was 7 for 13 for 74 yards when he took a hard hit from Eagles defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and smacked his head on the ground midway through the third quarter. Johnson was evaluated for a concussion, leading to a hindered Purdy returning but seldom throwing.
As quarterback-agnostic as the 49ers offense has been for most of the season, Purdy's injury took the air out of the group driven by dynamic playmakers like Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, and George Kittle.
Purdy had just four passing attempts as the one-dimensional 49ers offense struggled to sustain drives. The seventh-round pick attempted two passes after returning from injury, even with the 49ers trailing by at least 21 points for the entire fourth quarter.
Reddick's storybook run continued into Sunday.
Reddick, riled by his exclusion from the Associated Press' defensive player of the year finalists, had another dominant showing on the biggest stage of his career.
By spurring the Eagles to a win, Reddick now gets a chance to go back to Arizona, where his career almost fizzled out.
Reddick's forced fumble on the Niners' opening drive was just the beginning. The edge rusher had another sack on Johnson the following drive that forced a punt two plays later and recovered Johnson's fumble in the second quarter.
After two dominant showings, Reddick is up to 31/2 sacks, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery in his first postseason.