Squeaking by with a win over the Green Bay Packers in the Divisional Round thanks to a fourth quarter Christian McCaffrey touchdown, the San Francisco 49ers will now be playing host to the Detroit Lions in the NFC Championship Game.
The season almost ended way too soon for the 49ers last weekend, losing to the Packers in what would have been considered a massive upset, not to mention another playoff blunder for Kyle Shanahan and the team.
Since arriving in 2017, a year after he was the offensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons and was part of blowing a 28-3 late third-quarter lead in the Super Bowl, Shanahan has tried to overcome the stigma of blowing leads in pivotal games. He's taken the 49ers to the NFL playoffs in four out of his seven seasons in the Bay Area, going 7-3, with the three losses coming in two NFC Championship Games and the other in a Super Bowl, per Pro Football Reference.
This will be the 49ers' third straight conference title game, losing two straight. However, since Levi's Stadium has been erected, San Francisco is 5-0 on their home turf in the postseason. That's definitely something going in the 49ers' favor facing a red-hot Lions team that has been feeding off their home crowds at Ford Field the past two weeks.
Will the historic 49ers once again make it back to the Super Bowl, their seventh? Or will it finally be time for the Lions to make their first? Let's get into some 49ers bold predictions for the NFC Championship Game.
CAN'T RAIN ON OUR PARADE! #DoItForTheBay pic.twitter.com/64An0lyAEe
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) January 21, 2024
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49ers defense intercepts Jared Goff at least once
Both teams, from their Divisional Round matchups, are coming off games where they each had two defensive interceptions. Their last both came to seal the game for each. Will takeaways be the name of the game in the NFC Championship? Goff stayed mistake-free against the Buccaneers, but against the 49ers defense who had 28 takeaways, he may not be so fortunate.
Brock Purdy has two turnovers
Goff's counterpart, 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, also didn't make a turnover last weekend. But he did look a lot shakier than Goff, missing his receivers badly most of the evening. A lot of that was due to the Packers dialing up pressure and causing him to make quick throws. The Lions have a more talented defensive front thanks to guys like Aiden Hutchinson and others, who can disrupt the passing game for San Francisco, maybe causing Purdy to throw his interception. And if he holds onto the ball too long, maybe even a fumble.
Jauan Jennings finds the end zone against the Lions
Having to fill in for the injured Deebo Samuel, Jennings found himself getting some solid production against the Packers with five catches on six targets for 61 yards. With Samuel's status still up in the air, Jennings could definitely see more targets headed his way if the Lions decide to put their focus on George Kittle and Brandon Aiyuk.
Jennings has just 19 receptions for 265 yards and one touchdown this season.
49ers lose to the Lions in the NFC Championship Game
Could the 49ers really make it three straight NFC title losses? Well, that's what I'm calling here. Deep down, this all comes down to quarterback play, which favors the Lions in this case. Not many would have said that about Goff in comparison to just about any quarterback in the league just a couple of seasons ago. But he has continued to prove doubters wrong while in Detroit.
With that said, this game will come down to which of these quarterbacks can make the least amount of mistakes against the other's impressive defense. If you're the Lions and offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, though, you're taking a heavy look at how the Packers got the 49ers' defense in a few busted coverage situations last weekend, hoping that Goff can do the same.
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