49ers vs Eagles Betting Props: Good as Gould?

With the Philadelphia Eagles looking like the best team in the NFC and, perhaps, even in the NFL for most of the season and the San Francisco 49ers taking a 12-game winning streak into this weekend, Sunday’s NFC Championship Game could be one for the ages.

The good news is that the weather doesn’t figure to play an issue because late January games in Philadelphia can be tricky at times.

The NFL betting lines list the Eagles are 2½-point favorites and keep an eye on that number to see if it moves.

One of the biggest differences between the teams is how they start games. The Eagles have opened the scoring with touchdowns nine times compared to just three for the 49ers. That is something that could come into play when considering the NFC Championship Game props.

We have five proposition bets ahead of Giants-Eagles, highlighting some key players in both camps. Let’s check the latest NFL Picks, stats, injury reports, and NFL news. We’ve got plenty of NFL lines for the upcoming NFC Championship.

NFL: 49ers vs Eagles Props

Brandon Aiyuk score the first touchdown for 49ers +600
Jalen Hurts to score first touchdown for Philadelphia +350
First points on San Francisco field goal +370
Dallas Goedert 46½ receiving yards O/U -110/-120
George Kittle 46½ receiving yards O/U -125/-105

Aiyuk to Score Early

This has been an unusual season for the 49ers with losses to Chicago, Denver and Atlanta before they started to roll.

Ray-Ray McCloud has scored the 49ers’ first touchdown more times than George Kittle or Deebo Samuel. Ross Dwelley, Jeff Wilson (who isn’t even on the team), Tevin Coleman, Kyle Juszczyk and Jauan Jennings had the first TD for the 49ers as many times as either Kittle or Samuel.

One player who has not had trouble finding the end zone early in games has been Brandon Aiyuk and he could be a favorite when it comes to those betting on the NFC Championship Game props.

WR Brandon Aiyuk: #49ers have chip on their shoulder after recent playoff losses

via @RohanChakrav | #FTTB https://t.co/aX6OvAQFRW

— 49ers Webzone (@49erswebzone) January 26, 2023

Five times the first TD scored by a San Francisco player came courtesy of an Aiyuk catch. With that in mind, it is worth going with Aiyuk adding to that total on Sunday.

McCaffrey, Samuel and Kittle are all ahead of Aiyuk in the odds to score the first touchdown for the 49ers, so why not take a chance on Aiyuk striking first again with a price of +600?

Pick: Brandon Aiyuk to score the first touchdown for 49ers (+600)

Hitting the Ground Running

Last week’s game erased any thoughts that Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts might be reluctant to run the ball like he did earlier in the season due to a sore shoulder.

Six times during the season, Hurts ran it in for Philadelphia’s first touchdown so don’t be surprised if he keeps the ball when the Eagles approach the end zone. That is one of the bets to consider when it comes to the NFC Championship Game props.

The Eagles gave up the first points just five times in 18 games while eight times the opponents scored first on the 49ers.

Hurts is tied with receiver A.J. Brown with +350 odds to score Philadelphia’s first touchdown and that seems like the best way to proceed.

Pick: Jalen Hurts to score first touchdown for Philadelphia (+350)

Getting His Kicks

In each of the first two playoff games for the 49ers, the first points came on field goals by the reliable Robbie Gould. Gould went 4 of 4 on field goals in each of the first two playoff games and in his last nine postseason games, he is 23 for 23 on field goals.

When looking at NFL betting trends, Gould also opened the scoring three times during the regular season. It is worth considering that not once in the first 18 games of the season did the first points in an Eagles game come off the foot of the opposing team’s kicker. However, there is a first time for everything.

While the Eagles opening the game with a touchdown is priced at +175 per the Las Vegas NFL odds, it might be worth going with the first points coming from a 49ers field goal, which is currently at +370.

Pick: First points on San Francisco field goal (+370)

Tight Ends to be Busy

There are plenty of offensive players being undervalued in this one according to the NFC Championship Game props.

Samuel comes in at -125 to go over 50.5 receiving yards and -105 to finish under that total.

Philadelphia 1,000-yard receivers Brown and DeVonta Smith check in at 68½ and 67½ receiving yards according to the sportsbook. While opponents have a passer rating in the 30s when targeting San Francisco cornerback Deommodore Lenoir, they have had more success going against Charvarius Ward and Jimmie Ward, so that could open up opportunities for the two electrifying Eagles receivers.

While it likely will be harder to run against the 49ers than it was against the New York Giants, those are prop bets worthy of jumping on.

However, the starting tight ends are the players who are being undersold a bit.

Philadelphia’s Dallas Goedert is priced at -110 to go over 46½ receiving yards and San Francisco’s George Kittle is at -125 to top 46½ receiving yards. Expect both of them to be heavily involved in this matchup and those numbers will be tempting bait for sure.

Kittle is coming off a playoff career-high 95 receiving yards and will look to build on that. In Goedert’s last three postseason contests, he has 73, 92 and 58 yards.