The NFC championship is between two extremely fun teams and they can certainly get our attention. They have so many game changers on offense and I think that we’re in for a high scoring encounter this Sunday night. Last week, the 49ers scraped past a tough Packers team in a less than convincing win but they’ll need a better performance this evening in order to win. The Lions on the other hand gave Ford Field a thrilling final home playoff game and they’re flying into the West Coast with high hopes. It should be a tight game and we’re in for a good game from Levi’s Stadium.
This young Lions team keeps rolling and now they’re one win away from playing in the Super Bowl. The Bucs didn’t go away easily but the Lions played well in the 4th quarter to secure the win. First off, I thought it was another poor night by the Lions secondary who have gotten smoked in both playoff games. They gave up 181 yards to Nacua in the Wild Card Round and 147 yards to Mike Evans last week which is way too much. The 49ers arguably have the best receiver duo in the league and it’s a much more talented offense than what they played in the last two weeks. Their receivers will make the Lions pay and they’ll cause problems all game if they cannot be stopped. The Lions face the best running back in football but the thing that should concern them the most is Aiyuk and Samuel. They’ve been good against the run but awful against the pass so they have to prioritize the 49ers passing game. One more thing that the Lions have to watch out for is all the different looks the Niners will give them. They can use CMC in the screen game and they can use Deebo Samuel in the backfield or on jet sweeps so Aaron Glenn will definitely have his hands full in this one. A key to success for the Lions on defense could be bringing blitz or pressure to Brock Purdy. In the Christmas game against the Ravens, Baltimore got into Purdy’s head by making him throw four interceptions and that resulted in the Ravens win. If Hutchinson & Co. can make Purdy uncomfortable, they could stop the Niners offense.
On the offensive side, it’s a huge test of leadership and being poised. Jared Goff has to be vocal because he’s been in this moment before with the Rams and most of his team has not played in a game like this before. The Niners’ fans will be loud and it’s up to Goff to settle his team down and keep them composed. They cannot make silly mistakes like delay of game and false start because in the end, those penalties will be the difference between winning and losing. This team has a lot of caliber and they are one win away from giving Motor City a Super Bowl appearance.
The 49ers squeaked through last week and it was certainly not one of their best performances. Their run defense struggled and Aaron Jones racked up 100+ yards against them. It’s important they bounce back in this game and do a better job against the Lions run tandem. The Lions are fantastic running the football along with their great offensive line so it makes it all the tougher for the Niners. They have to get the Lions into passing situations and if they can stop the run, the crowd will feed off it and make it challenging for Goff to communicate. It’s a young group of players on the Lions side and if the 49ers defense can get them to struggle early on, they could start making silly errors. They have to start quick and put the Lions in a hole early.
For the 49ers offense, they have to punish the Lions. This game could come down to the better offense and in my opinion, the Lions defense is more vulnerable. Kyle Shanahan has so many options and I think we’ll see the full playbook from him tonight. Another important thing for the 49ers is that they have to keep Brock Purdy protected. They have so many good players on offense that they don’t need a crazy amount from Purdy and they have to keep their quarterback safe. Purdy plays terrific when he’s in easy situations and the goal for San Francisco is to keep it that way for as long as possible. There might’ve been some rust last week against Green Bay but I fully expect that the 49ers will hit their stride in this game.
My prediction for this game is that the 49ers will win 37-31. The San Francisco team is more experienced and playing on home turf will sway the outcome of the game in their favor. All season long, the Lions haven’t been able to guard receivers and they will lose because of that. I feel that the 49ers can spread the ball more and they’ll do enough to beat the Lions. We’ve seen Brock Purdy flustered in big moments before but I think he’ll play well in this game and rise to the occasion. You can watch this game on FOX at 6:30 PM EST on 1/28/24 from Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
It’s the remaining NFC teams going at it and at the end of the game, only 1 will be going to the Super Bowl. Can the Detroit Lions stun Kyle Shanahan’s team or will the 49ers be the ones to go to Vegas and send the Lions back home?
I am rooting for Lions but 49ers are a much stronger team.
Enjoyed reading your detailed analysis.
Waiting for your SuperBowl prediction.
Good job and keep it up.