Christian McCaffrey scored two touchdowns and Brock Purdy threw for another score as the San Francisco 49ers rallied to a 34-31 victory over the Detroit Lions in the NFC title game Sunday, earning a Super Bowl date with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Earlier in the day, defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City went to Baltimore and came away with a 17-10 victory over the top-seeded Ravens.
The Niners and the Chiefs met in the 2020 title game, with Kansas City coming away with a come-from-behind 31-20 victory.
San Francisco opened as 2.5-point favorites in the Feb. 11 title game in Las Vegas.
The 49ers punched their ticket to the Super Bowl by overcoming a 17-point Lions lead at halftime.
A key play in the rally was a 51-yard pass to Brandon Aiyuk after the ball bounced off the face mask of Kindle Vildor.
Aiyuk said a ladybug landed on his shoe earlier in the day, telling Fox Sports: “Great luck — God was with us today.”
Patrick Mahomes led Kansas City to victory, going 30-for-39 for 241 yards and no interceptions. His favorite target, Travis Kelce, caught 11 passes for 116 yards.
Taylor Swift, who is dating Kelce, was in Baltimore to witness and celebrate Kansas City’s win Sunday. She has a concert on Super Bowl eve at the Tokyo Dome. That show would end at about dawn in West Coast time, making her attendance in Las Vegas possible.
Purdy says Niners had to 'find a way' while down in second half
Brock Purdy said his key second-half scrambles were simply acts of having "to find a way" to move first-down chains.
He contributed 48 key yards on five carries, leading San Francisco to an improbable come-from-behind win.
“Obviously my job is to distribute the ball to guys that are open, and then if someone’s not there, especially in this kind of game, you have to find a way," Purdy told reporters. "I had to do it, so I did it."
49ers never lost hope, even down 17 at halftime, coach says
San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan insisted he and his players were still confident they could rally despite Detroit's first-half domination.
"It being a 17-point game was encouraging, because it looked like it should have been worse. It's definitely how it felt. That's how the numbers looked," an exhausted Shanahan told reporters.
"We were only down 17. That's not too much, but you have to start playing a lot better in order for it to be not too much," he said.
No regrets on fourth-down plays in second half, Lions coach says
The Lions were stopped on two fourth-down plays in the second half, turning aside possible field goal attempts.
Lions coach Dan Campbell said he was simply confident in his team picking up the yards needed on fourth-and-2 from the San Francisco 28 and fourth-and-3 from the Niners' 30.
“I just felt really good about us converting and getting our momentum and not letting them play long ball," he told reporters. "They were bleeding the clock out; it’s what they do. I wanted to get the upper hand back. It’s easy hindsight, and I get it, you know. I get that. But I don’t regret those decisions.”
The emotional coach told reporters how proud he was of the players.
"You feel like you get your heart ripped out," he said. "But I’m proud of that group, and I'll go anywhere with that group."
The title-less streak in Detroit will continue a little longer
The future looks bright for coach Dan Campbell, quarterback Jared Goff and their Detroit Lions.
But for now, the franchise's streak of seasons without a title will continue.
The pro football club with the most consecutive seasons without a championship is still the Chicago/St. Louis/Arizona/Phoenix Cardinals, at 76 straight title-less years. Detroit's number is now at 66.
49ers celebrate NFC championship win
Michigan governor, other politicians applaud Lions
The early lines from sportsbooks have San Francisco as 2.5-point favorites over Kansas City.
Heartbreak for Detroit but a bright future
This will go down as a top-tier sports heatbreak for the city of Detroit, but the future for the Lions is bright.
They have a lot of young talent all over the field. We'll see them in the playoffs again soon.
Niners recover onside kick and look to run out clock
San Francisco will look to run down the clock and go to Las Vegas as champions of the NFC.
Lions make one last push with late TD
Goff found Jameson Williams for a 3-yard touchdown with 56 seconds left, cutting the Niners' lead to 34-31.
An onside kick is coming.