Kyle Shanahan admits he doesn’t know why 49ers are favored to beat the Eagles – Marca English
The marquee matchup of week 13 in the NFL is a rematch of the 2022 NFC Championship game at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, where the Eagles will host the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
Bad blood has brewed between the two teams ever since Philadelphia romped to a 31-7 win in January, clinching an appearance in Super Bowl LVII. The 49ers on Sunday will have a chance to gain a measure of revenge and perhaps emerge as favorites to win the NFC — the oddsmakers seem to think so, as San Francisco is a narrow favorite at the Linc.
This was news to 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan, who told the media on Wednesday that “it doesn’t make a lot of sense” why San Francisco would be favored in one of the NFL‘s most hostile environments.
Ratcheting up the trash talk
The budding rivalry between the 49ers and Eagles can be seen in how the stars of one team talk about the other (and vice-versa). San Francisco star Deebo Samuel labelled Philadelphia cornerback James Bradberry “trash” during the offseason — and months later, Samuel refused to recant.
Bradberry has taken a diplomatic approach to Samuel’s remarks and seems eager to let his play do the talking, especially knowing the chip on the shoulder that comes with being an underdog in your own backyard.
“I wish he would have used a better word to describe my play,” Bradberry told reporters. “But it is what it is. At the end of the day, all I can do is control my work ethic and what I do day to day.”
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Can the 49ers stop the “Tush Push”?
The Eagles will be looking for any and every opportunity to use the NFL‘s most unstoppable play — the “Tush Push,” also known as the “Brotherly Shove.” The sequence of quarterback Jalen Hurts lining up behind center Jason Kelce and plowing ahead in short-yardage situations has driven opposing defenses crazy.
You would think that one Eagle-turned-49er might know how to stop it, but he insists this isn’t the case.
Javon Hargrave, who left Philadelphia for San Francisco in a major free agent deal last offseason, has seen the Tush Push up close and personal in numerous practices with his former team. Yet, when asked if he knew the secret to slamming the door, Hargrave only said “I wish.”
“I know it’s possible to stop, but it’s proven that it’s extremely hard,” Shanahan told reporters of a play that has an 80 percent success rate for the Eagles in 2023. “So you try to keep them out of those situations.”
