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The San Francisco 49ers beat the Green Bay Packers in the Divisional round to make it to the NFC Championship. As the first seed in the conference, they were coming off a bye week and were widely expected to emerge victorious.
In the end it was a closer call than many expected. A young and fearless Packers team ran them close and lost just by three points, 24-21. Had they not missed a field goal in the fourth quarter, we could have had overtime.
However, all that ultimately matters is winning the game and that they did. Brock Purdy led them on a comeback drive in the fourth quarter for the go-ahead touchdown. They then intercepted Jordan Love in the final minute of the game to stop the chance of an improbable comeback. Their reward is now the NFC Championship game.
San Francisco 49ers to face Detroit Lions in NFC Championship
The 49ers became the second team to make it to the conference championship after Baltimore Ravens did the same in the AFC earlier in the day. That means that both first seeds are now through.
The third and the fourth seeds in the NFC, The Detroit Lions and the Tampa Bay Buccneers battled it out on Sunday for a privilege to line up against Brock Purdy and company.
Jared Goff and the Lions came out as the better team with a 31-23 win against the Buccaneers.
Baker Mayfield's resurgence as one of the top QBs in the league was a major talking point this season. However, like any story, there has to be an end. And the Detroit Lions gave the final goodbyes to Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Ford Field.
The Lions will now get a chance to battle the 49ers to make it to the Super Bowl.
Kyle Shanahan shows remarkable consistency over half a decade
Kyle Shanahan has now led San Francisco to four NFC Championship games in five years. It is remarkably consistent and he gets his reward in a home game in the next round. Last year, they had to travel to the Philadelphia Eagles for the conference title. However, as the first seed this time, the 49ers will host the next match as well at 6:30 PM ET on Sunday, January 28.
The worrying thing for them, though, is that they are yet to lift the Lombardi Trophy during this run. And they suffered their biggest defeat this season to the Baltimore Ravens, who they will meet in the Super Bowl if both the top seeds advance. The head coach will have to pull out something special for a different outcome.
