The Brandon Aiyuk catch. A few timely Brock Purdy scrambles. Two huge fourth-down stops. Here’s how the 49ers pulled off a masterful comeback.
— There are the months of preparation, film study, game planning, injuries, pain, work and sacrifice. All of it is essential if you want to get to the Super Bowl. But sometimes, even after all of that, you still need a funny-shaped ball to bounce your way.
“Obviously, nobody wins without a little luck,” San Francisco 49ers left tackle Trent Williams said in the locker room, a couple of hours after his team’s 34-31 comeback victory over the Detroit Lions in the NFC Championship Game. “Tonight was just our time to get it.”
The discussion was about one key third-quarter play — a 51-yard Brandon Aiyuk catch of a Brock Purdy throw that had every right to be an interception but instead became the play that turned the 49ers’ fortunes around. There was 6:29 left on the third-quarter clock, and the Lions led the 49ers 24-10. Moments earlier, San Francisco had stopped Detroit on a fourth-and-2 from the Niners’ 28-yard line. That seemed like a turning point, but the Niners still needed to make a big play or two on offense to cash in.
A 17-yard pass to receiver Deebo Samuel moved the ball to the Niners’ 45-yard line. Purdy lined up in shotgun and called for the snap. Down the field, he saw the play unfold the way he wanted. Safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson picked up Samuel on a crossing route, leaving Aiyuk one-on-one with cornerback Kindle Vildor. That, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan would explain later, meant Purdy was supposed to launch it downfield to Aiyuk.
“We need an explosive play and BA is one-on-one? I’m going to take that [opportunity],” Purdy said. “I was giving my guy a shot.”
What San Francisco didn’t count on was how well Vildor would cover, as the 2020 fifth-rounder stayed between Aiyuk and the goal line, putting himself in position to make an interception. But as he reached back to catch the ball, he tumbled, and the ball hit him in the chest and popped back up in the air.
“I was surprised,” Aiyuk said. “I felt the look before, pre-snap, and that I had a chance to get the ball, but he just stayed on top. I don’t even know.”
Being surprised didn’t cost Aiyuk, though. He saw the ball bounce up in the air off the defender, and he dove and caught it himself at the 4-yard line.
