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San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan is well aware that his 8-3 team somehow became favorites against the 10-1 Philadelphia Eagles in an NFC Championship rematch.
“I mean, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to me,” Shanahan told reporters on Wednesday, “but I don’t really know how that stuff works. So, I don’t really know why. It is random.”
What Shanahan does know is the importance of his team staying in the moment for the anticipated Week 13 showdown in Philadelphia. The Eagles beat a short-handed 49ers squad in the same stadium 11 months ago.
“Yeah, I think it applies every week, but I think it’s always tougher when the moment’s a lot bigger outside of the building just because of obvious ramifications and the history,” Shanahan said. “But, the moment is exactly what it is every Sunday and you’ve got to make sure that’s reality for our players.”
A ‘Completely Different’ Game
Shanahan also emphasized that Sunday will be completely different from the playoff loss. The 49ers faced a quarterback crisis with an injury to Brock Purdy, and then backup Josh Johnson got knocked out of the game, which left running back Christian McCaffrey as the guy.
“You throw it out and start from scratch. I mean, if it’s early in the year, but when you have this much tape, you don’t like to watch what they were into last year,” Shanahan explained. I think we’re just both different teams, different styles. You evolve all the time and you evolve each week. I think a lot of that stuff can, in my history, it hurts you more than it helps.”
San Francisco has turned things around of late with the three-game winning streak after a three-game skid in October. The Eagles, on the other hand, have found a way to win every week except an October 15 hiccup against the New York Jets.
Kyle Shanahan Names Keys to Stopping Eagles QB Jalen Hurts
One of San Francisco’s biggest tasks consists of slowing down Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, a task far bigger than stopping his famed “brotherly shove” play.
“Yeah, you want to try to keep him out of those situations first and foremost,” Shanahan said. “I know it’s possible to stop, but I think it’s pretty proven that it’s extremely hard, so you try to keep him out of those situations.”
“They do such a good job of balancing everything out with the drop-backs, the play-actions, the RPOs, the quarterback run game, the regular run game,” Shanahan continued. “So, it’s really impossible to stay ahead of them in terms of who has the chalk last.”
Hurts has 410 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns this season, and the Eagles can gain ground with running backs D’Andre Swift and Kenneth Gainwell. Swift has 770 yards and four touchdowns, and Gainwell chips in amid 202 yards and two touchdowns this year.
“They’ve got a lot of answers in their run game and stuff, which could put him in some pretty good situations,” Shanahan said. “So, you’ve got to be able to weather the storm when they get you.”
“Let it be a first down and not a touchdown. Play very disciplined, very sound, and when you get your opportunity to make plays you can’t miss them,” Shanahan concluded.
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