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Four years ago, the San Francisco 49ers were closing in on their first Super Bowl triumph in a quarter century when Patrick Mahomes led Kansas City to three touchdowns in the final six-plus minutes, rocketing the Chiefs to a 31-20 victory.Each of the past two years the Niners (12-5) came up one step short of returning to the big game for a shot at redemption, losing on the road to the Rams and Eagles in the NFC championship game.They're this time Kyle Van Noy Jersey around. Were right where we want to be, Niners left tackle Trent Williams said. Were the No. 1 seed."ADVERTISEMENT So, they'll get to enjoy wild-card weekend like the rest of us and with one playoff win would get to host the conference championship game on Jan. 28 for the chance to reach Super Bowl 58 in Las Vegas next month.A caveat: the 49ers went 5-3 at home this season, including a to Baltimore, the AFC's top seed on Christmas Day.Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys (12-5) surged past the slumping Philadelphia Eagles to win the NFC East and earn the NFC's No. 2 seed, edging No. 3 Detroit 20-19 in Week 17 in part because of a that negated the Lions' go-ahead 2-point conversion with 23 seconds left.The Cowboys (12-5) host coach Mike McCarthy's former team, the Green Bay Packers (9-8), on Sunday afternoon ahead of another big reunion when Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams (10-7) visit Detroit to face Jared Goff and the Lions (12-5) in a primetime game pitting the two QBs who were traded for each other in 2021. On Monday night, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-8), led by Tom Brady's succe sor, Baker Mayfield, host defending NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles (11-6), who stumbled into the playoffs with five lo ses in six games.1. (12-5). Five Lombardi trophies in seven Super Bowl appearances: beat Bengals 26-21 in Super Bowl 16, beat Dolphins 38-16 in Super Bowl 19, beat Bengals 20-16 in Super Bowl 23, beat Broncos 55-10 in Super Bowl 24, beat Chargers 49-26 in Super Bowl 29, lost to Ravens 34-31 in Super Bowl 47, lost to Chiefs 31-20 in Super Bowl 54. Last year: 13-4, No. 2 seed, beat Seahawks 41-23 in wild-card round, beat Dallas 19-12 in divisional round, lost to Eagles 31-7 in NFC championship. Plan the parade: San Francisco might have the leagues most difficult offense to defend with playmakers such as NFL leading rusher Christian McCaffrey, Kenneth Murray Jr. Jersey Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle, and a quarterback in Brock Purdy able to get them the ball. The defense is almost as good with stars on every level, starting with DE Nick Bosa, do-everything LB Fred Warner and star CB Charvarius Ward. When everyone is healthy, there might not be a team as deep or as balanced.Hold the confetti: The Niners have a few holes on the roster with the right side of the offensive line struggling in pa s protection this season and subpar special teams. The biggest knock against San Francisco during coach Kyle Shanahans run has been their ability to play from behind. The Niners are 0-38 under Shanahan when falling behind by at least eight points in the fourth quarter and Purdy struggled in his few chances this season to lead a game-tying or game-winning drive.Were here right back where you want to be with an opportunity to go do something special with the right type of guys. Warner.2. (12-5). Five Lombardi trophies in eight Super Bowl appearances: lost to Colts 16-13 in Super Bowl 5, beat Dolphins 24-3 in Super Bowl 6, lost to Steelers 21-17 in Super Bowl 10, beat Broncos 27-10 in Super Bowl 12, lost to Steelers 35-31 in Super Bowl 13, beat Bills 52-17 in Super Kellen Winslow Jersey Bowl 27, beat Bills 30-13 in Super Bowl 28, beat Steelers 27-17 in Super Bowl 30. Last year: 12-5, No. 5 seed, beat Buccaneers 31-14 in wild-card round, lost to 49ers 19-12 in divisional round.Plan the parade: If Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb can keep their QB-WR connection humming the way it has since before the halfway point of the season, just a little help from the run game will give Dallas plenty of potency on offense. Turnovers and sacks have always been important in Dan Quinns defense. The Cowboys just need to avoid lulls in those areas. The biggest boost was the rise to the No. 2 seed, which potentially means two, maybe three, playoff games for a team that has a 16-game winning streak at AT&T Stadium.Hold the confetti: If the offense bogs down the way it did in lo ses to San Francisco each of the past two postseasons. The first was a wild-card game at home, the second a divisional lo s to the Niners on the road. Without sacks and turnovers, the defense sometimes struggles to make an impact. Two late-season examples were end-of-game drives in a lo s at Miami and a squeaker over Detroit. The Cowboys beat the Lions only because a disputed penalty negated a 2-point conversion that would have given the Lions a one-point lead with 23 seconds left.Its all about an excellent opportunity that we prepared ourselves and we put ourselves in this position. We earned it, deserved it and more importantly, were going to take advantage of it. coach Mike McCarthy.3. (12-5). One of four teams never to have reached the Super Bowl. Last year: 9-8. Have lost past nine playoff appearances, most recently 26-6 to Seattle in wild-card round on Jan. 7, 2017. Plan the parade: Detroit broke a single-season NFL record with rushing and pa sing touchdowns in 15 games and tied league marks with 325-plus total net yards of offense and rushing touchdowns in 16 games. , who led the Rams to a Super Bowl appearance in his third season, ranked second in the NFL with 4,575 yards pa sing, fourth with 30 TD pa ses and he didnt throw an interception in nine games. David Montgomery and rookie Jahmyr Gibbs might be the best pair of running backs in the league. Amon-Ra St. Brown led the NFL with nine 100-yard receiving games and 677 yards after the catch. Hold the confetti: The Lions dont have a championship-caliber defense, ranking 27th against the pa s and 23rd in points allowed. They allowed Minnesotas journeyman QB Nate Mullens to throw DeAndre Carter Jersey for more than 800 yards combined in Weeks 16 and 18. Rookie Sam LaPorta, who set an NFL rookie record for tight ends with 86 catches, and return specialist and speedy receiver Kalif Raymond sustained knee injuries in Week 18 and would be in the playoffs. Weve won 12 games for a reason, were where were at for a reason, lets do it again."coach Dan Campbell.4. (9-8). Two Lombardi trophies in two Super Bowl trips: beat Raiders 48-21 in Super Bowl 37, beat Chiefs 31-9 in Super Bowl 55. Last year: 8-9, No. 4 seed, lost to Cowboys 31-14 in wild-card round. Plan the parade: With QB Baker Mayfield making the most of an opportunity to jumpstart his career on a one-year, $4 million contract, the Bucs rebounded from a stretch in which they lost six of seven games to go 5-1 down the stretch and overtake New Orleans and Atlanta to win the division. Mayfield has thrown for career highs of 4,044 yards and 28 touchdowns while cutting down on critical mistakes that undermined him in previous stints with the Browns, Panthers and Rams. The defense regained its swagger in the final month, too, and enters the postseason coming off Tampa Bays first shutout since 2010.Hold the confetti: While coach Todd Bowles feels good about the overall progre s of the offense, the Bucs sputtered the past two games while scoring 13 in a 10-point lo s to the Saints and just nine in the shutout win over the last-place Panthers that clinched a playoff berth. Mayfield (ribs, ankle) played through injuries against Carolina, however the pa sing attack suffered because of his lack of mobility. The Bucs were last in rushing for the second straight season, averaging just under 89 yards per game. If they cant run the ball effectively in the playoffs, their chances for succe s diminish greatly.We have a locker room full of guys that are comfortable being counted out. Thats when were most comfortable." Mayfield.5. (11-6). One Lombardi in four Super Bowl appearances: lost to Raiders 27-10 in Super Bowl 15, lost to Patriots 24-21 in Super Bowl 39, beat Patriots 41-33 in Super Bowl 52, lost to Chiefs 38-35 in Super Bowl 57. Last year: 16-4, No. 1 seed, beat Giants 38-7 in divisional round, beat 49ers 31-7 in NFC championship.Plan the parade: Somewhere inside Philadelphias locker room is a team that went to Uchenna Nwosu Jersey the Super Bowl a year ago and opened this season 10-1. It does look bleak for the Eagles after one of the greatest collapses in Philly sports history. But if coach Nick Sirianni and QB Jalen Hurts can rekindle the greatne s that seemingly had them on course for a repeat run to the Super Bowl, the Eagles could emerge as a surprise out of the NFC. Hold the confetti: Yikes. The Eagles went 1-5 down the stretch. Hurts and wide receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith are hurt. In their past six games, the Eagles have been outscored 182-123. Only five teams have ever won three playoff games on the road to r |
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