Regarding this tale:

San Francisco 49ers

Known for rapidly losing interest in quarterbacks, Kyle Shanahan demonstrated his dedication to Brock Purdy in the summer following the 49ers’ trade of Trey Lance, the No. 3 pick in 2021 they obtained by giving up three first round picks.

However, declaring Purdy a starter in training camp doesn’t mean that his commitment won’t wane after a few seasons.

When Shanahan instructed Purdy to let it rip downfield in order to help the 49ers overcome a 17-point deficit against the Detroit Lions during the NFC title game on Sunday, it was the ultimate display of loyalty.

Purdy emerged as the obvious choice in San Francisco after his long pass to Brandon Aiyuk went through the helmet of Kindle Vildor and into his hands for a 51-yard completion.

Purdy’s passes and quickness helped the 49ers overcome the Lions 34–31 and move on to Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas, where they will take on the Kansas City Chiefs.

Thanks to his postseason exploits, Purdy probably ensured he’ll start for the 49ers in 2024.

However, a Super Bowl victory may cement his starting position for many years to come.

For the time being, Purdy has Shanahan’s whole trust, and the 44-year-old head coach will probably rely on him once more when the team plays the Chiefs in an attempt to win the team’s sixth Lombardi Trophy.

Purdy had 267 throwing yards and 48 rushing yards, so Shanahan was wise to rely on him.

In addition to making Aiyuk the center of attention for the offense,

the 49ers offensive play-caller should be commended for adding fullback Kyle Juszczyk to the playbook, as his versatility posed problems for the Lions’ defense.

Here are some more coaching selections from NFL Championship Sunday that we thought were good and others that we didn’t.

calls that we enjoyed

The Lions attack hard on fourth down.

Given the criticism Dan Campbell faced for his fourth-down choices against the 49ers, I’m definitely in the minority here.

However, I still believe that Campbell was correct to play to win the NFC title game and to keep to his aggressive tactics.

But I have no trouble criticizing offensive coordinator Ben Johnson’s plays for the two botched fourth down tries.

Even so, that’s a bit of nitpicking considering Josh Reynolds fumbled the throw on fourth-and-2 from San Francisco’s 28-yard line that would have resulted in the first down.

Halfway through the third quarter, the Lions would have had a 31-10 lead if they had converted and then scored a touchdown. That’s competitive play.

Perhaps the Lions are in a close game tied 27–27 in the last quarter if they had attempted a field goal to go up 27–10.

Even so, the odds are about 50/50. Maybe the Lions should have used Jammyr Gibbs to quickly dump off against the 49ers’ pressure on the second failed fourth down.

However, we could spend all day playing this 20/20 hindsight game.

In the last minute of regulation, Campbell was rightfully criticized for using a timeout too soon

and for failing to call a pass play before David Montgomery was stopped for a two-yard loss at the 1-yard line. However, it was already too late.

Campbell attempted to make a shot but missed, and his teammates seem comfortable losing on their terms.

The Chiefs depend on their excellent defense.

Less is more in certain situations. With his effective performance in the AFC title game triumph over the Baltimore Ravens, Patrick Mahomes delivered just that.

Even though it was a one-possession game, the Chiefs didn’t turn to Mahomes to win it.

Chiefs head coach Andy Reid relied on Mahomes to step up when things counted,

but defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo and his strong group carried the club most of the time.

The Chiefs maintained their composure and carried out their game plan, leaving the Ravens disappointed.

However, Mahomes and Travis Kelce established the tone early and controlled the possession window (37:30 to 22:30) to throw the Ravens’ offense off-balance.

Calls that we didn’t understand

Ravens withdraw from the sprinting match.

The Ravens abandoned the strategy that had led them to the title game.

When Baltimore only attempts 16 rush attempts and Lamar Jackson has 37 passing attempts, it’s never a good indication.

Once more, the game was decided by one possession for the majority of the day,

but Jackson frequently held the ball for too long because of the Chiefs’ excellent coverage of the Ravens’ pass catchers.

The fact that Jackson didn’t use his legs more seemed odd. But this season, he was set up to be patient with the passing game.

Todd Monken, the offensive coordinator, needed to call more run plays in order to create a rhythm and keep things unpredictable.

Lions retreat from the running game as well.

When it came to fourth down, the Lions never wavered from their aggressive approach, but the same cannot be said of their rushing attack.

Montgomery and Gibbs were abandoned by Detroit, as the 49ers scored 27 points in a row in the second half.

Maybe after Gibbs’s costly fumble in the third quarter that resulted in a 49ers touchdown, they were rattled.

Although the Lions’ running game totaled 182 rushing yards, 132 of those yards were gained before halftime.