CNN
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The Philadelphia Eagles beat the San Francisco 49ers 31-7 to advance to Super Bowl LVI on Sunday in Lincoln, Philadelphia.
The Eagles scored on their first possession and never looked back for a 49th loss.
After injuring his right elbow in the first quarter, 49ers starting quarterback Brock Purdy was sidelined, forcing a fumble after being hit by Eagles linebacker Hassan Reddick. Josh Johnson, the fourth-string quarterback for San Francisco, filled in for Purdy until the third quarter before being taken out of the game with a concussion.
Playing on an injured arm, Purdy re-entered the game but the 49ers offense struggled to muster any points.
Meanwhile, Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts and Philadelphia’s running game tore through the 49ers defense, racking up 148 rushing yards and scoring all four touchdowns on the ground. In the fourth quarter, Hurts (15) tied Cameron Newton (14) for most rushing touchdowns in a single season by a QB in NFL history, including playoffs. According to NFL research.
The Eagles, who advanced to the Super Bowl for the first time since winning the 2017-18 season, will face the winner of the AFC Championship between the Cincinnati Bengals and Kansas City Chiefs later Sunday.
Super Bowl LVI will be played on February 12 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
In the AFC, it’s the Bengals and Chiefs for the second straight season. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes will be looking for revenge after last year’s devastating loss at Arrowhead Stadium. Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow will look to repeat last year’s feat for his fourth straight win in Kansas City.
The Chiefs finished the regular season as the AFC’s No. 1 seed. They got a week off in the wild card stage, took care of the Jaguars in the divisional round and now they are exactly where they want to be.
The only problem is that their star quarterback is not 100% healthy.
Mahomes suffered a high ankle sprain in the divisional round. There’s no doubt he’ll be resilient through the pain, but any issues with his mobility will affect his ability to play.
Mahomes will have to get creative with how he moves the ball down the field. The onus is on the offensive linemen to not defend Mahomes. If left exposed, the risk of further damage increases.
The Bengals are the underdogs and the underdogs.
They upset the Bills in the divisional round and made it look easy. If that game is any indication of how things will go this weekend, the Chiefs should be ready for battle.
It’s also worth noting that history favors the Bengals. Burrow beat Mahomes 3-0. And in all three games, Cincinnati was tied or behind to start the fourth quarter.
Despite the Chiefs getting going early, the Bengals proved they shouldn’t be counted out until the final whistle. To top it all off, Barrow is the better quarterback the last time these two met in the AFC title game. His numbers improved across the board, and he gained more experience playing at a higher level.
Ultimately, the Chiefs are an elite team with an MVP-caliber quarterback and no injuries. The Bengals are a young and talented team with history on their side. Only time will tell which team has what it takes to reach the next level.