The Philadelphia Eagles might not pose as much of a threat to the Kansas City Chiefs as many believe they will.
That is, according to 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel and kicker Robbie Gould.
Samuel joined Adam Schein on "Mad Dog Sports Radio" from radio row at Super Bowl LVII media week, where he was asked how the 49ers would have beaten the Eagles in the NFC Championship Game had starting and backup quarterbacks Brock Purdy and Josh Johnson not suffered injuries in the game.
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"We can just go back to the first quarter, the first half. Just look how well our defense was actually playing, keeping Jalen [Hurts] in the pocket, which he doesn't like to do at all," Samuel said. "On fourth-and-5 you grant them a catch that you know is not a catch on fourth down.
"Then after that, Brock [Purdy's] fumble, they're right there at the 25-yard line, like that's points right there. And then just the amount of penalties, it was just outrageous. And then what a coincidence again, we turn the ball over again and it's 21-7."
Not only does Samuel believe that if Purdy had not been injured, the 49ers would have won the game, but he believes the final score would not have been close at all.
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"So the offense wasn't doing anything, nothing," Samuel continued. "Our defense was doing what they were supposed to and I feel like if Brock was in at quarterback and how our offense moves, I don't think it would have been close if that makes sense.
"It's not sour grapes at all, it's just what I see every day. I'm not salty at all, I just speak facts."
Gould also had a surprising take on the Eagles. The 49ers kicker joined 33rd Team's Trey Wingo for an interview on Thursday, where he gave his pick for the winner of Sunday's Super Bowl matchup between the Eagles and Chiefs and took a shot at Hurts, an elite dual-threat quarterback, for his ability as a passer.
“From experience and talent, I like Kansas City over Philadelphia, and I’m not taking anything away from Philly,” Gould said. “I think they’re a really good football team. Obviously, they have to be a good football team to get there, and they’ve done it pretty convincingly. They’ve never had to play in the playoffs a full game yet, right?
"So you get in a game where they’re down…If Kansas City gets up on them early, it might take them a little bit out of their game with the run plan, which I assume they’re trying to get going first to get Jalen Hurts going. But if you make Jalen Hurts play quarterback, you’re probably going to have a pretty solid day on defense.”
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Hurts, who finished second to Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes in the NFL MVP voting on Thursday night, took major steps forward in his ability as a passer this season. The Eagles quarterback completed 306 of his 460 passing attempts (66 percent) for 3,701 yards and 22 touchdowns with only six interceptions.
Had Purdy not been injured, could the 49ers have beaten the Eagles? Absolutely. Would they have blown them out at home? Not likely. Is Hurts a liability through the air? Not exactly.