NFC Championship Game: 49ers rally past Lions 34-31 to secure Super Bowl berth

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The San Francisco 49ers scored 27 straight points in the second half Sunday to erase a 17-point halftime deficit and rolled into Super Bowl LVIII with a 34-31 victory against the Detroit Lions in the NFC Championship Game.

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The 49ers (13-5) will face the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Feb. 11. The defending Super Bowl champions, who have reached the NFL’s marquee game four times in the last five seasons, advanced with a 17-10 victory against the Baltimore Ravens.

The game in two weeks will be a rematch of Super Bowl LIV, won 31-20 by the Chiefs.

Detroit, seeking its first Super Bowl berth and its first NFL title since 1957, fell to 12-6.

The 49ers rallied in the second half to secure the eighth Super Bowl berth in franchise history.

Elijah Mitchell scored on a 1-yard run with 3:02 left in the game to complete the 49ers’ rally.

The Lions moved to within 34-31 when Jared Goff hit Jameson Williams on a 3-yard scoring pass on fourth down with 56 seconds to play. That capped an 11-play, 75-yard drive.

The Lions attempted an onside kick, but the 49ers were able to recover and seal the victory.

After stalling in the first half, the 49ers regained their composure and benefited from some fortuitous bounces to rally for the win.

The 49ers took their first lead of the game, 27-24, with 9:52 to play when Jake Moody kicked a 33-yard field goal. The Lions had a chance to tie, but coach Dan Campbell decided to go for the first down on a fourth-and-3 play from the San Francisco 30. The 49ers held and kept their lead.

The 49ers also had a 17-point comeback victory in the NFC Championship Game against the Atlanta Falcons after the 2012 season, winning 28-24.

Brock Purdy led the San Francisco comeback on Sunday, completing 20 of 31 passes for 267 yards and a touchdown. Christian McCaffrey scored two touchdowns and rushed for 90 yards for the 49ers.

San Francisco got back into contention with two touchdowns and a field goal in the third quarter. Jahmyr Gibbs’ fumble at the Detroit 24 was recovered by the 49ers’ Tashaun Gipson. It led to McCaffrey’s second touchdown of the game, a 1-yard run, and a 24-24 tie.

Earlier in the period, Brandon Aiyuk made a 51-yard catch after a pass bounced off Lions defender Kindle Vindor and was downed at the Detroit four. San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy then tossed a 6-yard touchdown pass to Aiyuk, and the 49ers trailed 24-17 with 5:17 left in the third quarter.

The score came after the 49ers defense stopped the Lions on a fourth-and-2 play at the San Francisco 28.

The 49ers opened the second half with a scoring drive, capped by Moody’s 43-yard field goal with 11:02 left in the third quarter to trim Detroit’s lead to 24-10.

The Lions scored on four of their five possessions in the first half to take a 17-point lead at the intermission.

Detroit capped off a dominating half by getting a 21-yard field goal from Michael Badgley for a 24-7 lead with seven seconds left.

Detroit got a break midway through the second quarter when Malcolm Rodriguez intercepted Purdy near midfield. That led to a a 15-yard touchdown run by Jahmyr Gibbs to make it 21-7 with 5:54 left in the half.

After the Lions took a two-touchdown lead into the second quarter, the 49ers cut the lead in half on McCaffrey’s 2-yard scoring run with 13:48 left in the half.

Detroit took a 14-0 lead with 2:34 left in the first quarter when David Montgomery scored on a 1-yard run. That capped an 11-play, 62-yard drive.

The Lions struck first, taking only four plays to take a 7-0 lead. Williams broke several tackles en route to a 42-yard touchdown run with 13:18 left in the first period. San Francisco got into position to score on their first drive, but Moody missed a 48-yard field goal with 7:58 left in the first quarter.

Campbell took a team that started the 2021 season 0-10-1 en route to a 3-13-1 mark to the conference final. The franchise also became the first team to go 0-16 when it went winless in 2008.

Campbell was a tight end on the New York Giants team that lost to Baltimore in Super Bowl XXXV in January 2001.

Coach Kyle Shanahan is trying to join his father as the first father-son duo to ever win a Super Bowl, according to The Athletic. Mike Shanahan coached the Denver Broncos to victories in Super Bowls XXXII and XXXIII.

He will get the chance in two weeks.

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NFC Championship: Brandon Aiyuk (11) of the San Francisco 49ers catches a pass that was tipped by Detroit's Kindle Vildor during the third quarter. The reception was good for 51 yards and was a turning point in the game for San Francisco. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

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