We’re on to Tremendous Bowl LVII in Phoenix after the Eagles and Chiefs superior with wins within the convention championship video games Sunday. We’ve been highlighting the perfect performances throughout the common season and now the perfect efforts within the playoffs need to be acknowledged by our MMQB employees.
Listed here are the championship sport standouts:
John Pluym: Haason Reddick, LB, Eagles. Philly signed Reddick to a three-year, $45 million deal after he posted 11 sacks with the Panthers in 2021. And Reddick lived as much as the cash and rather more with 16 sacks in ’22. However Reddick arguably performed the perfect sport of his profession Sunday within the NFC championship. He knocked out 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy within the first quarter with an elbow damage, chopping down on Purdy’s arm to trigger a fumble. He then knocked out fourth-stringer Josh Johnson, who left the sport with a concussion. Reddick completed the sport with two sacks and a fumble restoration, and he left the 49ers and not using a quarterback who might throw the ball.
Reddick was practically unstoppable towards the 49ers with two sacks and a fumble restoration.
Invoice Streicher/USA TODAY Sports activities
Mitch Goldich: Dwelling crew followers. After per week spent discussing the concept of sometime (presumably quickly) internet hosting the convention championship video games at impartial websites, we have been handled to 2 soccer video games in two notoriously loud stadiums with nice followers. Each residence groups received in entrance of their residence crowds, one in a blowout and one in an in depth sport that got here right down to the ultimate seconds. I hope the league is wise sufficient to understand how a lot could be misplaced by taking these video games out of those sorts of environments to chase some {dollars} by staging these video games in random cities that lack an attachment to both crew.
Gary Gramling: Skyy Moore, PR, Chiefs. Moore accepts on behalf of the Chiefs’ particular groups. Suffering from muffed punts all through the season and mercifully faraway from return duties in consequence, Moore changed an injured Kadarius Toney and put Kansas Metropolis in place to have the game-winning drive with a 29-yard punt return. After which, after a messy season that included an ankle damage that he didn’t appear fairly recovered from till final week, Harrison Butker hammered the game-winner on the finish of an ideal operation—tip your hat to holder Tommy Townsend and lengthy snapper James Winchester. (Additionally, honorable point out to the Chiefs’ coaching employees for getting their quarterback’s ankle prepared.)
Michael Rosenberg: Christian McCaffrey, RB, 49ers. It’s sort of bizarre to provide a sport ball to a participant whose crew bought blown out, however 49ers-Eagles was one of many strangest playoff video games ever, so possibly that is becoming. As soon as Brock Purdy bought injured, the 49ers have been doomed; when Josh Johnson, their fourth QB of the season, bought damage, too, the sport was noncompetitive. However McCaffrey is all the time aggressive. With no likelihood his crew would throw, and no likelihood to win the sport, McCaffrey performed exhausting and with shocking effectiveness. He had 106 yards on 19 touches, together with his crew’s solely landing on a incredible run when he merely refused to get tackled. The remainder of the Niners had 58 yards complete.
Claire Kuwana: Miles Sanders, RB, Eagles. As Michael mentions above, the Eagles’ win at Lincoln Monetary was such an odd sport that it’s exhausting to establish what precisely Philadelphia did so effectively as to punch its ticket to the Tremendous Bowl. And that’s to not discredit what the Eagles achieved Sunday, however with the saga of Purdy and Johnson’s accidents, a lot of the sport’s narrative has been centered across the 49ers’ dangerous luck. However one participant on the Eagles that stepped up was Sanders—after scoring 11 touchdowns throughout your complete common season, he had 11 carries and half of the Eagles’ touchdowns within the NFC title sport. His two scores got here at key moments for the Eagles, too, which is the principle purpose he will get a sport ball this week: The primary was on the crew’s opening drive, and the second gave them again the lead after McCaffrey’s landing (of which they by no means relinquished).
Greg Bishop: Jalen Hurts, QB, Eagles. This wasn’t his greatest sport statistically: 15 completions, 121 passing yards, 39 dashing yards, one dashing landing. However Hurts cares about one factor: successful. That’s what he has completed his entire profession, whether or not at Alabama, Oklahoma or within the NFL in Philadelphia. He didn’t make any crippling errors. He helped stake the Eagles to an early lead. And he’s headed to the Tremendous Bowl. If he was damage for longer, if he didn’t play Sunday, the identical couldn’t be mentioned.