The San Francisco 49ers defeated the Washington Commanders, 27-10, but perhaps the most exciting part of their day came after the game.
Not only did they win but San Francisco also clinched the No. 1 overall seed in the NFC thanks to a surprising victory by the Arizona Cardinals over the Philadelphia Eagles.
A few players on the 49ers (including Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle) huddled around the phone of sportswriter Mike Silver so that they could watch the end of the game, which wound up as a frustrating loss for Philadelphia fans.
Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle celebrating the Cardinals scoring. Cc: @MikeSilver pic.twitter.com/uuxEjXyh7O
— Tracy Sandler (@TracyFGSN) December 31, 2023
Once the game was officially over, the players watching were especially excited about the comeback win by Arizona.
49ers coach Kyle Shanahan admitted that he was late to his press conference because he was also watching the Cardinals-Eagles game. He described it as “awesome” and thought it was pretty cool to see.
Kyle Shanahan reacts to "awesome" ending of Cardinals-Eagles that clinched the No. 1 seed for the 49ers 😁 pic.twitter.com/eb7N91xA9X
— 49ers on NBCS (@NBCS49ers) December 31, 2023
Because of the results, the 49ers have now secured a bye for the first week of the postseason as well as home-field advantage in the NFC. 49ers linebacker Fred Warner thanked the Cardinals for their help.
This should make the potential path to a Super Bowl a little bit easier for San Francisco.
