Things didn't look good for George Kittle and the San Francisco 49ers for much of Sunday's NFC Championship game against the Detroit Lions. But when the clock read 0:00, the Niners had a victory, and Kittle had the jokes.
“They had us in the first half, not gonna lie,” Kittle deadpanned after his team secured a 34-31 victory and a trip to Super Bowl LVIII to face Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Lions sure did have the 49ers. San Francisco headed to the locker room down 24-7 at halftime, with the Lions in complete control of the game.
But Kyle Shanahan's half time message resonated, and his team answered the call in the second half. The 49ers outscored Detroit 27-7 in a rousing comeback. Kittle, who finished his day with two catches for 27 yards, made his biggest impact in the fourth quarter.
On a second-and-nine from midfield, Brock Purdy found Kittle for 28 yards, helping to set up a 33-yard field goal from Jake Moody.
Those three points gave San Francisco a 27-24 lead, one they would not relinquish.
Kittle effective when 49ers needed it most
While he was relatively quiet against the Lions, Kittle was instrumental in his team's win over the Green Bay Packers in the divisional round of the playoffs.
The former Iowa Hawkeye had four receptions for 81 yards and a touchdown in that game. It was nothing new for Kittle, who finished the regular season second on the team in receiving yards (1,020).
It was the third time Kittle eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark in his NFL career, and the first since the 2019 season.
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