It was a tale of two challenges: the Eagles got away with one (or lack thereof), and the 49ers got burned by another.
On the first drive of the NFC Championship game, Philadelphia's Jalen Hurts was flushed from the pocket on 4th-and-3 and whipped a 25-yard pass to DeVonta Smith along the sideline, who extended to make an incredible one-handed snag.
Or did he? Before Kyle Shanahan and Co. could gather their wits and challenge the play, a situationally aware Smith sprang up and ran to spot the ball and the Eagles rushed to the line to get the next play in.
Upon closer review, Smith clearly lost control of the ball as he crashed into the turf—the play should have been called an incompletion.
Two plays later, the Eagles were dancing in the endzone.
On the ensuing San Francisco drive, quarterback Brock Purdy dropped back to pass and got nailed by the Eagles' rush, sending the ball caroming into the Philadelphia secondary.
They couldn't intercept what the refs were calling an incomplete ball before it landed, but DL Linval Joseph smartly jumped on it anyways, because a Philadelphia challenge overturned the ruling on the field: it was a fumble, and it was the Eagles' ball again.
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