Eagles Stifle inury ridden 49ers and Chiefs outlast Bengals in final seconds

It was just the sixth play of the 49ers first drive, that had already gained two first downs, when Brock Purdy faked a handoff to Christian McCaffrey, as well as a reverse to Deebo Samuel. Neither fooled Hassan Reddick, who beat tight end Tyler Kroft badly off the edge and hit Purdy’s arm before it came forward with the ball. Nobody realized yet, but the 2022 NFC Championship Game was over, despite 52 minutes remaining on the clock. What wasn’t immediately obvious was that Purdy had suffered a completely torn UCL in his throwing elbow, that will likely require Tommy John surgery to repair. That would mean a 9 to 12 month recovery, meaning a return some time between November 2023 to February 2024. There is a slight hope that it can be repaired, with a return in August. As the final seconds ticked off the clock the Eagles realized they are heading back to the super bowl for the second time in five years after a 31-7 win over the 49ers at Lincoln Financial Field. The NFC Champions will now play the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl. Quarterback Jalen Hurts was 15-25 passing for 121 yards passing on the day, as Philadelphia racked up the bulk of their yards on the ground. Miles Sanders and Kenneth Gainwell both had 40+ yards rushing, while Boston Scott scored a touchdown in his third straight game.

The Chiefs are also heading to the Super Bowl after a 45-yard field goal by Harrison Butker with three seconds left to play at Arrowhead Stadium. Butker’s field goal came after a penalty that will live in infamy in Cincinnati. Bengals defensive end Joseph Ossai was flagged for hitting Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes out of bounds at the end of a scramble. The 15-yard penalty came with eight seconds left on the clock and Butker’s kick made the Chiefs 23-20 winners. It’s the third Super Bowl trip in the last four seasons for the Chiefs and they’ll be facing head coach Andy Reid’s former team after the Eagles beat the 49ers on Sunday. The game also sets up a matchup of brothers between Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and Eagles center Jason Kelce. The Chiefs’ game-winning drive was set up by an excellent punt return by Skyy Moore. Mahomes finished 29-of-43 for 326 yards and two touchdowns. The Chiefs were also down a number of receivers. Justin Watson was inactive and Kadarius Toney, Juju Smith-Schuster, and Mecole Hardman all left the game with injuries. Kansas City persevered without them and the Jones led defense made plays when they had to in order to get their team back into the Super Bowl. Joe Burrow took a little time to get going, but ended the game 26-of-41 for 270 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. The Chiefs weren’t able to turn those turnovers into points, but the lack of points came back to haunt the Bengals on a night when they needed to be just a little bit cleaner across the board. That will be something for them to work on this offseason while the Chiefs will get their chance at the third Super Bowl title in franchise history.

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