After Hours with Amy Lawrence PODCAST: Hour 2

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The trick? Simply start with bite-sized steps, like Goalie's Apple Cider Vinegar Gummies with added B vitamins for daily health. Or Goalie Ashwagandha Gummies to help you relax, restore, and unwind.

Mmm, tastes like wellness just got a whole lot better. And when goals taste this good, it's easy to achieve them. Goalie, taste your goals.

Learn more at Goalie.com today. The best and worst moments from Championship Sunday were what? We're gonna put a spot up on our social media and you can fill in the blank.

Only the answers that use appropriate language will be passed on. I know you all get fired up about football. This is how it is.

And I'll just tell you this, I tease you because I've been through this a bazillion times before. This is a trend that happens every time there's maybe a little bit of controversy or there's a tough finish for a particular fan base. Or fans maybe were betting money and lost money.

Whatever the reason is, whenever there's a tight game and a wild finish, an outcome that people didn't expect or that kind of blew you away down the stretch. People get angry, people get emotional, and I get it. As fanatics, we are irrational, we're illogical. And until the emotion wears off, we probably should not be on our social media. And yet, when there is no one else to take it out on, very often the resident radio host becomes the target of ire. Again, I've been through this so many times in my 20-year career. It's comical now. There were times earlier in my career where I would respond to some of the ridiculous things that people would say about me. And then I just figured out fans are looking for a target. And there have been many times, too, over the past 20 years where fans have come back and apologized.

Oh man, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean it. Anyway, I get it. Fans are upset. Now do I think it excuses you for being asses? No, but I certainly understand it. I will tell you, there's nothing that you can say to me on social that I haven't seen or heard at least 100 times before.

Trust me, there's nothing new under the sun on Twitter or Facebook. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. I would like to hear from you.

I would like to hear your reaction. Championship Sunday is now in the books, and we are down to two. Just two teams remaining.

I have to go back and look. I left the poll pinned to our show Twitter because I wanted to look back at the results once we knew which two teams would be in the Super Bowl. So we gave you the four options. Chiefs-Niners, Chiefs-Eagles, Bengals-Eagles, Bengals-Niners. And we ask you to vote on the matchup you wanted to see.

Not the one that you expected to see, but the one that you wanted to see. Well, overwhelmingly it was Bengals and Niners. Oops.

Maybe that's why you're so angry. 37% of you voted Bengals versus Niners, which would have been a rematch of a Super Bowl that Boomer Esiason played in that happened 30 years ago, right? So, was that 30 years ago or 40 years ago?

Was that in the 80s? Shoot, I'm going to have to Google it. Boomer's going to be mad at me.

Don't tell him. Okay, let's see. Bengals-Niners-Super Bowl. Yeah, it was Super Bowl 23, and here we are on 57. So yeah, getting close to 40 years. Not quite, but getting close. Late 80s. Phew.

Kick saving a beauty. So most of you said, or the majority of you said Bengals-Niners, Chiefs-Eagles got 20% of the vote. So it wasn't the last choice, but clearly the Chiefs were not what our fans anyway wanted to see. Thankfully, we don't get to vote. That's not how football works.

That's not how pro sports work. It's after hours. CBS, our show Twitter, and Jay has put up a spot where you can respond and fill in the blank. Oh, it features The Rock.

I mean, he knows exactly how to make me smile. And then also on our Facebook page too, we're just asking you to fill in the blank. The best and worst moments from Championship Sunday were what? Our phone number 855-212-4227.

That's 855-212-4CBS. Now still to come, we have not yet heard from the Bengals, and that includes Joseph Osi. That includes the man who delivered the late hit, as well as his coach who spoke about that late hit and about his player. We also have Joe Burrow. A little more from Patrick Mahomes. I mean, Travis Kelce, I could listen to all day, but I know that's me.

I find him to be highly entertaining. So still more postgame reaction from Kansas City. And I know Joseph Osi is the one that many people want to hear from. But I promised you, NFC Championship and NFC Championship, you shall get the Niners in their third conference title tilt in four years. And remember, they were in the Super Bowl against the Chiefs going back four seasons ago, and they had a 10 point lead in the fourth quarter and lost. Then last year, they were in the NFC Championship. And they lost to their division rival, the Rams, who went on to capture the Super Bowl. So here we are again, third conference championship for San Francisco in four years.

Philadelphia won the Super Bowl in 2017, so the 16th season. But completely different team, right? There's no Carson Wentz. There's no Nick Foles. This is not Doug Peterson. This is not Frank Reich. This is not that coaching staff or that roster of players.

Couple of guys left over. But for the most part, there's been a complete and total turnaround for the Eagles, except for their front office, right? Howie Roseman still calling the shots, still running the draft, still guiding the team in terms of its personnel.

I would say this has been, if not a 100% total rebuild, pretty damn close to it. They had to start fresh when they brought in Nick Sirianni, and they were looking for a quarterback. They said they had faith in Jalen Hurts, and boy, did he play like an MVP this season.

I don't know if he'll win it because of those games he missed at the end, but he definitely was living up to the expectation, living up to the belief and the faith that his franchise had in him. Now this game started out with Philadelphia on the move on its opening drive, but I gotta tell ya, I couldn't help but wonder, what if? Thinking about fourth and three at the 35-yard line, that's the first big play of the game. Three receivers to the near side, motion, Gamewell, Hurts.

Stoops down, then straightens up, then goes down again, he comes back. He's looking left, he's looking right, he's pumping, he is firing the football, and it is caught by Devontae Smith at the five, another marvelous catch. So we thought, yes, Jalen scrambles, he rolls, well he didn't really roll, he kind of moved out to his left, and he throws crossbody down the field to a Devontae Smith who is amazing. I guess technically people would call him the number two wide receiver, but he's just as good as A.J.

Brown, he has been. And obviously he went to Alabama, Jalen was there, it's a connection that we've seen over and over in clutch moments. So Devontae reaches out, pulls in what we believe is a one-handed grab as you hear with Merrill Reese on Eagles radio, but he hit the ground. It shouldn't have counted. But did you notice what he was doing when he got up? He's using what was likely a pre-established signal to his teammates to hurry, hurry to the line, hurry, let's get to the next snap.

Why? Probably because he knew on replay that wouldn't have stood up. So Kyle Shanahan, why not challenge that Devontae Smith catch?

The replay we saw didn't definitely show that. We saw one up on the scoreboard, I wasn't going to throw one anyways, just to hope to take the chances, but they showed one up on the scoreboard that didn't have all the angles you guys saw, and that looked like a catch, so we didn't want to waste the time out, which we definitely would have if we didn't see that, but then I heard they got a couple other angles and you guys end up seeing later. So the Eagles hurry to the line as Devontae is pounding his fist together, let's go, let's go, let's go, and they're rushing up to the line, they take the snap. Kyle Shanahan says he never really saw an angle that would indicate that Devontae didn't catch it, and just as a side note, neither did the broadcasters, because nobody said in that moment when Devontae Smith hauled in the catch, nobody said anything except they're hurrying up, they want to make sure that they get this next snap off, but we didn't know definitively until after the touchdown, till after the break, so yes, two snaps later, the Eagles are already in the end zone.

The first San Francisco drive is when everything takes a right hand turn for the Niners. Hassan Riddick, who was the, the, how do I want to say it, the, the word escapes me, essentially he was the Chris Jones of this game, he was nearly unblockable in this game, so he's the counterpart to Chris Jones for the Chiefs, he was everywhere in this game. He comes rushing in, and he hits Purdy's right arm, Brock Purdy, excuse me, his right arm, he bends it backward to the point where right away I thought, shoot, that's got to be hyperextended, that could be his elbow, and as Purdy's trying to throw, his arm is exposed, and Riddick is trying to cause a fumble, right, which is exactly what he does, and Purdy suffers an elbow injury. Initially I was hoping maybe it was a stinger, but you could tell from not only his face, but if you're reading lips, that this was something that was going to take a bit for him to recover from, and so, are you kidding me, the Niners, who have survived everything you could possibly imagine with their quarterback room, to win 12 games in a row, have to pivot yet again. Big Hall of Famer, Kurt Warner, Kevin Harlan, from Philadelphia, Josh Johnson is the new quarterback.

He gets the ball from the 20. Johnson has played for about every team in pro football, and also in the U.F.L., the United Football League, the Alliance of American Football, and the X.F.L., and he's been called in because there's an injury to the throwing arm of quarterback Brock Purdy. This will be the fourth different San Francisco quarterback this season. As it turns out, we know now that Purdy suffered a UCL sprain.

That's been the report from San Francisco. You'll hear from him coming up. He did speak postgame, as did his teammates, but it's Hassan Reddick who gets to him, and while he's shaking it out and he's trying to wear this wrap and warm it up and maybe get some feeling back in his arm, he could not go back on the field because he could not grip the football. He couldn't go, and so instead it's Josh Johnson who is making his postseason debut.

This is a guy who has spent more than a decade in the league, and he's played for, what, 13 teams, a baker's dozen rosters he's been on, so he's a veteran, but his first playoff action. Early in that second quarter, the Niners do what they had to do when Brock Purdy took over for Jimmy Garoppolo. Remember, they were heavy on Christian McCaffrey.

That's your answer. Give the ball to your veterans. That's one of the reasons why Purdy has been so successful, at least until he could get his feet under him, and so it was the CMC drive, a 23-yard touchdown run, that got the Niners into the end zone, and it was impressive because he may be shorter, but the man is strong, and he was carrying defenders, multiple broken tackles. It was his ninth consecutive game for the Niners in which he scored a touchdown, so it was tied up there. Even after losing Brock Purdy, the Niners make this 7-7, but the Eagles answer.

It's nearly a seven-minute drive for Philadelphia late in the second quarter. There's Kenneth Gainwell again, right? It doesn't really matter who.

I shouldn't say that. That's probably minimizing the athletes that they have, and I don't mean to do that. They can put a lot of different running backs behind that line, and because the O line is so good, they're still able to create space. How many times do we see Miles Sanders bust through or Boston Scott or Kenneth Gainwell and barely get touched? That offensive line is a major weapon, so there's a long run by Kenneth Gainwell, and along the way on the stride, there's also three defensive penalties against the Niners, which they just couldn't afford. Their margin of error went to nothing when they lost Brock Purdy, and so they could not afford to make mistakes on defense as well. It was really on the shoulders of the defense to be as clean and as perfect as possible, and maybe that's asking too much, but this Niners D has a lot of superstars. They could not afford those mistakes, and so ultimately what it does is put the Eagles right back into the red zone. It is second down and five, ball at the 13. Hurts gives it off against Sanders, five, into the end zone. Kelsey, Jason Kelsey, what an unbelievable job.

Kelsey joined Mylotta off that left side. You can see the alley created on the left side, and Miles Sanders just loses speed to get the ball into the end zone. At this point, of course, the narrative is the Niners are sunk. They don't have a quarterback. Well, they don't have a quarterback who's played any time. They've got Josh Johnson. It's their fourth QB.

There's no way. They're coming back in Philadelphia. But I didn't actually believe that or I wasn't sure, I should say, until these final 90 seconds of the first half.

This was your turning point, right? So you get that 13-yard rush by Miles Sanders, his second touchdown, and that's one of those times where I don't think one of the Niners laid a finger on him. And then life comes at you fast if you're the Niners.

Things change very quickly. First and 10, 49ers. Johnson is throwing. He fumbles the snap, goes down and gets it.

That could have been a disaster. I think he got it. Now the Eagles say they have. Let's see. I thought Johnson was on top of it, but then... Marcus is very comfortable that the Eagles have the football. They do.

They do. Oh, my. They go to Scott, tries to sweep. He's at the five.

He pushes forward. He is in for the touchdown, Boston Scott. Meryl Reese on Eagles radio in 90 seconds. The Eagles had 14 points. And there was no way that the Niners were coming back from that, not with their quarterback challenges. And it got worse in the second half, obviously.

So it was a 21-7 lead at the half. And I will say this about that Josh Johnson moment. He dropped the snap.

I mean, this is a guy who is getting on the field for his first significant football in how long, right? He drops the snap. And the ball was right there. It was right there. But for some reason he couldn't get to it. He couldn't fall on it. I don't know if it was shock, if he was stuck.

I have no idea. He couldn't get to it. And the Eagles obviously were diving in. They had full momentum.

Maybe that's why. Maybe because there were a couple of Eagles defenders who were already on the move with a full head of steam. And he just couldn't get his body moving. And so that fumble gives the Eagles a short field. And then Boston Scott, that's their third rushing touchdown of the first half. And again, 14 points in 90 seconds.

As they move forward into the second half, it's a monster drive that slams the door. This is what the Eagles can do. Eight minutes with the football, 91 yards, 15 plays. And if you needed any more proof that the Eagles can dominate on the ground, well, there was more. Hurts again under center. He sneaks, he pushes, and he is in. Touchdown Jalen Hurts.

I'm going to say this. The Eagles are 15 minutes and 43 seconds away from the Super Bowl. Meryl Reese again on Eagles radio through three quarters, the Eagles had four rushing touchdowns and 120 rushing yards.

They are bulldozers. Behind that offensive line, they will bulldoze you. So whatever you think of the Chiefs, their offense, as we look forward to this matchup, if you don't have the ball, it's really hard to do damage on offense. And the Eagles are masterful.

But they can also hurt you if you stuff the box and you stop the run with everything you got. They've got Devante Smith and A.J. Brown and Dallas Goddard. They're a juggernaut. And so to see people comment that the Eagles only got to the Super Bowl because the Niners were on their fourth quarterback is just dumb.

I wish we saw these two powers go toe to toe. It didn't work out that way. Injuries are part of the game. But there's no way you can see what the Eagles did and not believe there's a real chance they would have done the same thing regardless of who the quarterback was. This team is good, and they've been one of the best teams in the NFL all season long.

A couple of numbers that are just gaudy. Four of six in the red zone. Do you know the Niners didn't even get into the red zone?

And that is more about their quarterback situation, obviously. But four for six in the red zone for the Eagles. Plus 15 minutes time of possession. And that also is partly because the Niners couldn't keep the football. But 15 minutes. I mean that wears out a defense.

I don't care how good your defense is. That wears you down. It wears you out.

Nick Bosa was on and off the field. Kept getting knocked over, knocked down. I mean they're giving it everything they've got. But if you're on the field for these extended drives, you're running out of steam. And energy. And push.

And explosiveness. The defense did its part, too. Three sacks for the Philadelphia defense and three takeaways.

Hassan Redick, two sacks, and that forced fumble. I know that it's hard to evaluate the Eagles' performance, or the Niners, because of what happened early in the game. But the Eagles, they earned every bit of the Super Bowl appearance.

And this is their fourth right in franchise history. One of them coming with Andy Reid in 2004. And then of course they won their first ever Super Bowl title with Nick Foles. And Philly Philly against the Patriots going back six years ago. So we'll let you hear from a jubilant Nick Sirianni and Jalen Hurts.

Of course the Eagles. But also a dejected Niners room. Kyle Shanahan trying to find the silver lining, but Brock Purdy feeling like this is all his fault. And wait until you hear which teammate puts that to bed.

Wait until you hear which veteran teammate lifts up Brock Purdy. I have a, I'm not kidding you, a heart next to his comments. Or next to the cut on my sheet because this is what teamwork and teammates are all about.

This is what brothers and family are all about. On Twitter, ALawRadio. Also on our Facebook page, After Hours with Amy Lawrence. Asking you the best and worst moments of Championship Sunday.

Fill in the blank baby. So whether you choose our social media or you want to give us a call, 855-212-4227. Before the hour is up, we'll hear from the Bengals as well. And you know what, there's a lot of business taking place in football too. The Cowboys make a decision on their offensive coordinator. The reports are that Aaron Rodgers and the Packers are heading to a divorce. Did you know that Justin Herbert had surgery? Oh yeah, there's a lot happening.

It's After Hours. Goalie gummies get you so close to your goals you can actually taste them. The trick?

Simply start with bite-sized steps. Like Goalie's apple cider vinegar gummies with added B vitamins for daily health. Or Goalie Ashwagandha gummies to help you relax, restore and unwind.

Tastes like wellness just got a whole lot better. And when goals taste this good, it's easy to achieve them. Goalie. Taste your goals. Learn more at Goalie.com today. Goalie gummies get you so close to your goals you can actually taste them. The trick?

Simply start with bite-sized steps. Like Goalie's apple cider vinegar gummies with added B vitamins for daily health. Or Goalie Ashwagandha gummies to help you relax, restore and unwind.

Tastes like wellness just got a whole lot better. And when goals taste this good, it's easy to achieve them. Goalie. Taste your goals. Learn more at Goalie.com today.

H-E-L-P dot com slash positive. First with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. You are listening to the After Hours Podcast. The San Francisco 49ers. The Philadelphia Eagles. Fourth and three. Under center.

Heard it. Quick pitch. They reverse it to Samuel. Being chased. He is running to the far side of the field. And he is tackled and down by Reid Blankenship.

Makes a great play near the sideline. And the Eagles take over on down. Ten. Nine. Eight.

The Philadelphia Eagles have won the NFC Championship. Four. Three. Two. One. By the final score. The Eagles 31. The 49ers 7. Attention. Air traffic control.

A flock of Eagles is heading to Arizona. Pretty awesome. This is something you dream about your whole life. And like I said to the guys, we've all been dreaming about it. Whether you were dreaming about it when you were 2, 10, 14, 18 or when you got in the NFL. This is something we all dream about and we get to do it because we did it better than anybody else in the NFC this year. So that is pretty special.

This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. The voice of Nick Sirianni. Second year as the head coach in Philadelphia. And look. They're in the Super Bowl. They were a surprise playoff team last year. I would say this season people expected more from the Eagles especially with the AJ Brown trade. And they were talking confidently with a lot of faith in Jalen Hurts going back to OTAs. And then training camp. And then preseason. Believing that he was ready to make that step to be a franchise quarterback. And he was an MVP candidate for most of this season. Merrill Reese and Mike Quick on Eagles radio.

I like the air traffic control. Do you think he wrote that out? I mean some guys do.

I'm just saying. I've been in those big situations as a play-by-play announcer and I've not written them out. And then if you screw up you think, dammit, I should have written that out. Some guys do script it just in case. You want to be prepared.

You want to make sure you have a call that is worthy of being replayed over and over and over and over again. Air traffic control. A flock of Eagles is heading to Arizona.

Yes, that's it. The Eagles and the Chiefs are heading to Arizona. Two franchises for whom Andy Reid coached.

And yes, two franchises that employ Kelseys. It'll be the first time we've ever seen brothers play against each other in a Super Bowl. It'll also be the first time and I love that so many people were tweeting this. But specifically Warren Moon is a Hall of Famer. He's been on the show a bunch. I will read his tweet to give you this news in case you didn't know it.

Warren put this out there a couple hours ago. I'm so proud to see Jalen and Patrick as the first two African-American quarterbacks to face each other in the Super Bowl. We have come a long way.

What was the best and worst moment of Championship Sunday for you? We've got a spot where you can fill in the blank on Twitter, After Hours, CBS or on my Twitter, ALawRadio. And then on our Facebook page too.

Thank you so much for hanging out with us. And I'm kind of bummed that at least the people I'm hearing from. I know that's typical of social. That people are just negative all the time. Negative Nellies and more nasty. I kind of feel like there's a lot to be excited about for these two teams.

I tend to look at the positive. But there's going to be some great stories. Andy Regis being one of them.

Jalen Hurts in the Super Bowl being another. There's so many amazing ways to look at this matchup. We're just getting started. We've got two weeks of course.

And yet it seems like the majority of the reaction on social is negative and nasty and nonsensical. A lot of passion that goes into football. I will say that.

So you hear from Nick Sirianni. How about Jalen Hurts? The Eagles are clicking right now and can beat opponents a variety of ways. How good this team has been to playing together. Being together. Challenging one another.

When we experienced some painful times and some tough times, we always found a way to overcome. So you want to be going into it in a situation like this. We got a chance to go out there and win it all.

So we want to prepare to go do that. Jalen didn't have a great offensive day. That's not what the Eagles were after. A lot of passing. They were using the run to set up the pass. So he did have a couple of shots down field. Though the Devontae Smiths should not have counted.

Oh my gosh. I'm one of those people that for a couple of seconds I will fall down the what if rabbit hole. And I know in sports it doesn't work that way. Because there's no way to know if that ball had been ruled an incompletion. Do the Eagles still get into the end zone? Do they not? Does Brock still get hurt?

Does he not? I mean you change one moment in time and then ultimately there's a domino effect. So you can't really play the what if game. Jalen should have had fewer than 121 yards passing. In fact, that particular shot down field was 29 yards. In fact, if you take that catch away to Devontae Smith, he doesn't even have 100 yards passing. So that wasn't their end game.

That wasn't their plan. But he does have a rushing TD. They have nearly 150 yards on the ground. Four rushing TD's in total. Remember last week they had three against the Giants. Seven rushing TD's in two games for the Eagles. That's what they've done. That's how they've gotten to the Super Bowl. And Miles Sanders, he was taking it personally.

He believed that it was up to the run game to set the tone against San Francisco. I just like how we won against a team that claims they're physical and got a lot of players on the same side. We match up pretty well. The way we won today is very satisfying. The job's not done. We didn't just get this far just to get there. We're trying to win it all.

We got one more game for the rest of our lives and play our best ball, man. Miles Sanders had a couple of touchdowns on 42 yards. So it wasn't really about the yardage. It was more about the ball control. It was certainly about their ability to score once they got into the red zone.

And A.J. Brown gives a ton of credit to those crazy fans at Lincoln Financial Field. It was so loud, man. It was so dominant on third down. They helped us out so much, man.

They gave us momentum. And I know Arizona's going to feel like a home game, you know? Man, this place is special. This is a special place, man.

And I've been loving it ever since I got here, man. We're going to try to get this dug. One more, man.

We got one more. NBC Sports Philadelphia. I'm thinking that A.J. Brown's not going to say anything about how much he wants the ball. Four targets last week or four catches last week.

Four catches this week on eight targets. But they're in the Super Bowl. I kind of feel like if you're in the Super Bowl, you win the game however you can win it.

You do what works best for you. And what's going to work best for you against the Chiefs is keeping the ball away from their offense. What's going to work best for you against the Chiefs is running the ball down their throats. Is using that offensive line. That's what's going to work best for you against the Chiefs. The Bengals don't run first. They almost completely forsook the run in this game. Even though they were not trailing by so much that they wouldn't be able to run the ball. The Eagles end up winning 31 to 7.

And you would think, yeah, high flying, high octane. But no, good old fashioned, smash mouth football. Coming up, we're going to hear from the two teams that came up short.

Painful fashion, completely opposite ends of the spectrum. The Niners in the second half at least. And I'll tell you at the end of the first half with those 14 points in 90 seconds, that was it. There was no way they were going to be able to generate enough offense to come back. They needed some takeaways really. They would have had to score on defense or special teams and that didn't happen. So two completely different feels at the end, right? You've got the Niners who are left wondering, what if?

What if? You have the Bengals feeling like they had wasted opportunities that they did not capitalize on. Also, I got a tweet from a listener who says Mike Hilton actually was using the burrow head comment. So whether it was fans, whether it was Mike Hilton, I think the majority of it was generated by fans.

But yeah, it also was set on the field and captured on camera. Ruh-roh! Alright, so you'll hear from the two teams that came up short. Bengals, Niners. Their journeys come to an end, but think about this. 12 consecutive wins for San Francisco ended on Sunday.

A franchise record 10 straight wins ended for the Bengals on Sunday. Momentum is fleeting in sports, especially when you get to this point where guys are putting everything they've got into. Goalie gummies get you so close to your goals, you can actually taste them. The trick?

Simply start with bite-sized steps. Like Goalie's apple cider vinegar gummies with added B vitamins for daily health. Or Goalie Ashwagandha gummies to help you relax, restore, and unwind.

Tastes like wellness just got a whole lot better. And when goals taste this good, it's easy to achieve them. Goalie, taste your goals. Learn more at Goalie.com today. And when goals taste this good, it's easy to achieve them. Goalie, taste your goals. Learn more at Goalie.com today.

And when goals taste this good, it's easy to achieve them. You are listening to the After Hours Podcast. The San Francisco 49ers. Gardner Minshew will take a knee. And this game is over. Congratulations to Jeffrey Lurie and Howie Roseman, Nick Sirianni, and the Philadelphia Eagles. Yeah, they earned it.

They are going to the Super Bowl. There's a lot of emotions that come at you at once. I think obviously it's disappointing and we wanted to be playing and have a shot to play in the Super Bowl. But at the same time, I'm unbelievably grateful for the way this team took me in in the middle of the year. It feels like a family in there from the coaches and the ownership to the players. And I'm grateful for everyone in that locker room.

Hits, misses, and messes. Time to talk football After Hours with Amy Lawrence. We have Christian McCaffrey, who helped to propel the Niners to another level when he was traded from Carolina to the Niners and became a part of this offense. Remember, he had been with the team for just a matter of days and he was already on the field right after Christian McCaffrey joined the team. They lost Jimmy Garoppolo and Brock Purdy was pressed into duty. Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle and Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk and Elijah Mitchell. These were the veterans, the offensive line that Brock Purdy could rely on until he got his feet under him.

Until he got comfortable, a little more comfortable, as comfortable as you can be in that situation. This was a total team effort. And Christian McCaffrey, he said, I'm going to do anything I can to help this rookie kid, this rookie quarterback. And boy did he. Touchdowns in nine consecutive games, including Sunday, even as the Niners lost. And there were people who were calling for him to play quarterback, too.

He's their emergency QB. He actually changed helmets and put on one that would allow him to hear the offensive coaches talking to each other. Right, so there are special helmets for quarterbacks so the plays can be relayed.

Not sure if you know this, but the audio cuts out with 10, 15 seconds to go on the play clock. So you can't talk all the way up to the snap. You can't be communicating, but that is so the quarterbacks can get the plays. Right, so he changed out helmets so he would have audio in his helmet just in case he had to go in. And he and, was it Kyle Juszczek, who were on the sidelines looking at the play calls just in case. But as Josh Johnson went out, Brock Purdy came back in, but it was very clear that he was limited.

All he could do, really, was to stand back there, take the snap, and hand off the ball. My arm just felt like it stretched out. Just felt like really a lot of just shocks all over from my elbow down to my wrist, front and back.

Just pain, really, all over. We get an MRI tomorrow. It is a little swollen in the forearm area near the elbow, and that's all I know, man. It's still in pain, obviously, but just got to get the MRI tomorrow. According to the reports out there on the information superhighway, the Niners believe that Purdy sprained his UCL, which is an elbow ligament. He will have the MRI on Monday, as you hear him say.

Now, there is a bit of a concern that it's a ruptured UCL, which would require surgery, though not something that would keep him out for next season. Honestly, people were asking me on social, so who is the Niners quarterback next season now that Purdy is hurt? This is not a long-term injury, and I still say that if he's not already the starting quarterback, and I believe they have to give Trey Lance some time, though he obviously suffered a broken bone, a broken ankle, so it may take him a little longer, but regardless, at the very least, it's a competition, and these two quarterbacks are cheap.

Brock Purdy, he was the last guy taken in the NFL draft. He's costing the Niners almost nothing comparatively to what quarterbacks are making and to what Trey Lance is making, because Trey Lance, they moved up to get with the number two pick in the NFL draft two seasons ago, right? So they can let Jimmy Garoppolo go. I do think they probably would be happy to bring in a low-priced bargain basement veteran QB just to complete the room. Maybe it is Josh Johnson, but there's no need to, and Garoppolo likely wants to go play somewhere else, too. He'd like the chance to start again, but there's no need to pay a veteran quarterback when you've got two guys that you believe can do the job, and they're both on rookie deals, and Brock Purdy's salary, $934,000.

He's not even making a million dollars. So, yeah, Purdy and Lance are going to be your two quarterbacks, one and two, however it works out, and maybe there's a veteran there as well. Now, I don't know if Jimmy G chooses to stay, but unless there are two injuries, he's unlikely to see the field again, so it just depends on what he wants and what else is out there.

It's after hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. People were asking why didn't Purdy try to throw, why didn't they put in McCaffrey and let him throw or Debo. They were doing the best they could with what they had, and so it's crazy that Brock Purdy both started and finished this game and was two for two, but so much in the middle of that. I've been throwing after the hit occurred on the sideline just to see where I was at, but even in those throws, it was painful, and so I couldn't throw anything probably over ten yards, five yards, so that's why we just had some screens.

Those were really early options when I went back in. So not only did they lose Brock, but then they lose Josh Johnson as well. It was the independent spotter, is what I heard, that flagged him for concussion protocol after his head hit the ground.

It snapped back. It was one of those classic moments where there's always the possibility of a concussion or a head injury. So he was put in concussion protocol and did not return, which is why Purdy had to come back in the game. So yeah, they end up losing both of their quarterbacks.

They didn't have another QB on their roster at the time. It's not ideal. It sucks.

You never want to see any of your teammates get hurt, let alone obviously the quarterback position. It's tough. You're never out of the fight though, and we believed it and it just didn't turn out our way. We got beaten. Wish we had another shot at it with everybody, but it's life.

It's the way it goes. I'm just so sad for the older guys, Fred, Trent, George, Eric Armset, everyone, all the guys that have been through this. They've obviously been to the Super Bowl in 19, and then last year in the NFC Championship, and then for this to happen, it's in the first drive really of, man, this is the kind of game we have to play after the first drive.

I'm just frustrated. Brock Purdy is a rookie. He was the last pick in the NFL draft. He's not talking about himself, although he did describe the pain and the reason why he couldn't play. He's sick for the veterans, the guys that he wanted so badly to go to a Super Bowl, the guys that have worked so hard, that have put years into it.

That's where his thought process is. That's why he feels bad, and you can tell from his facial expressions, his body language, he was putting this on himself. He never took his helmet off, even when he wasn't in the game and Josh Johnson was playing.

He never took his helmet off. He tried the whole time to keep throwing, to figure out if he could grip the ball, if it was getting better, if he could feel anything that might allow him to go back in the game, and then he blames himself. Fred Warner delivers the, in my opinion, the message of the night, the best message, the sign of a teammate who cares more about his brother on his left and his right than he does about himself. He ain't got nothing to be sad about. He's the reason we even got to this game.

When Jimmy went down against the Dolphins, we didn't know what our season was going to be. He came in and did a heck of a job. He's the reason we're here right now. Fred Warner, a veteran on the defense who comes so close to making the Super Bowl, says Brock Purdy is the reason we're here right now, recognizing the Niners wouldn't have had a 12-game win streak. They wouldn't be in the NFC Championship if not for this young quarterback stepping into a nearly impossible situation and making it possible. Mr.

Irrelevant becoming so relevant that they were within striking distance of the promised land. I love that from Fred Warner. I absolutely love him encouraging and supporting his rookie teammate.

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