3 Takeaways from 49ers' Week 13 Win vs. Eagles

On Sunday, the San Francisco 49ers battled the Philadelphia Eagles in a rematch of last year's NFC Championship Game.

While Philadelphia came into the game with a league-best 10-1 record and had home-field advantage, the 49ers took it to the defending NFC champions, leaving with a decisive victory.

The 49ers did enough to limit Jalen Hurts, while the offense got huge games from Deebo Samuel, Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle and Brock Purdy. While the Eagles still have control of the conference's No. 1 seed, San Francisco proved that, for at least one day, it is the NFC's top team.

Here's what else we learned during the 49ers' Week 13 win over the Eagles.

The Eagles dominated the 49ers in last year's NFC title game, winning 31-7 and punching a ticket to Super Bowl LVII in the process. However, Purdy and backup quarterback Josh Johnson were both knocked out of that game.

"We lost because we played with 10 people," 49ers wideout Deebo Samuel said of that game in May, per Zion Olojede of Complex.

It certainly felt like the 49ers were eager to prove that they were the better team in Sunday's rematch. Players were seen interrupting the Eagles pre-game warmups, and linebacker Dre Greenlaw was later ejected following an interaction with a Philadelphia staff member.

Both teams played a physical brand of ball, and things were chippy and tense throughout the contest.

If San Francisco was indeed using last year's loss as motivation, it worked. Samuel, in particular, was spectacular, finishing with 166 receiving yards, 22 rushing yards and three touchdowns.

While Philadelphia tallied 333 yards and went 8-of-15 on third down, it recorded only 19 points in five trips into San Francisco territory.

On Thursday night, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott made a strong push for NFL MVP with a 299-yard, three-touchdown performance in a thriller against the Seattle Seahawks.

However, Purdy answered with his own big outing and another signature win on Sunday. He finished 19-of-27 for 314 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions. While some of his biggest plays were of the catch-and-run variety, Purdy was spectacular overall.

Purdy's MVP case is strong. He entered Week 13 leading the league in completion percentage (70.2), yards per attempt (9.4), passer rating (112.3) and QBR (75.6). He had thrown for 2,871 yards with 19 touchdowns and only six interceptions.

While Prescott has the edge in eye-popping statistics, including 26 touchdown passes, Purdy won the head-to-head matchup against Prescott and the Cowboys. Now he has a head-to-head win over Jalen Hurts, who like Prescott, entered Week 13 among the MVP favorites.

Those head-to-head victories will loom large alongside Purdy's efficient play when it's time for voters to make their picks. He'll have another opportunity to continue adding to his resume in Week 16 when the 49ers host the Baltimore Ravens and Lamar Jackson—another MVP front-runner.

Beating Philadelphia head-to-head was huge because it gives San Francisco a crucial tiebreaker in the battle for the NFC's top seed and lone first-round bye.

If the season ended today, that top spot would still belong to Philadelphia. However, the 49ers are now just a game back and can claim the No. 1 seed if San Francisco and Philly finish with the same record.

The 49ers remaining schedule has some potentially tough games, including rematches with the Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks plus the Baltimore matchup. The Eagles' schedule, on the other hand, is relatively easy aside from next week's rematch with Dallas.

After that, the Eagles will face the Seahawks, the New York Giants (twice) and the Arizona Cardinals. Seattle could give Philly a little bit of trouble, but the Cowboys—playing at home—are the team best equipped to hand the Eagles their third loss of the 2023 season.

Next week, San Francisco will have to take care of business against Seattle while also hoping for a Cowboys victory. If Dallas beats Philadelphia and the 49ers win out, the road to Super Bowl LVIII will run through San Francisco.