How the Eagles, 49ers, Chiefs and Bengals can win this weekend: Game plan keys, X factors

Former NFL safety Matt Bowen is a veteran of four teams over seven seasons, and now provides analysis for ESPN Insider.

We have four teams left in this season’s NFL playoffs, and a pair of conference championship games on Sunday will decide which two will continue to Super Bowl LVII. The San Francisco 49ers will travel to Pennsylvania to play the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship Game, while the Cincinnati Bengals will face the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game for a second straight season. How can each team pull off the win?

We dug into the tape to pick out keys to victory — one offensive and one defensive — and build out game plan blueprints for every team this weekend. Based on what I’ve seen on tape and with some help from the numbers, we can get a better feel for how coaching staffs will scheme for personnel, game situation and coverage. We also picked out an X factor player who could play a big part for each of the four franchises.

Here are the game plan keys for both games, along with the ESPN Football Power Index projections for each matchup.

NFC: (2) San Francisco 49ers at (1) Philadelphia Eagles

When: Sunday, 3 p.m. ET on Fox
Line: PHI -2.5 (46.5)
FPI prediction: Eagles by 4

How the Eagles can beat the 49ers

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