Brandon Aiyuk Made A Wild Catch On A Ball That Bounced Off A Defender’s Facemask

The Detroit Lions dominated the first half of Sunday’s NFC Championship Game against the San Francisco 49ers, leading 24-7 at the half, but there was a feeling that at some point the Niners offense would wake up.

Brock Purdy did not look sharp in the early going, and while they drove into Lions territory to start the second half, they could only muster a field goal to make it 24-10 as things stalled out once across midfield. Detroit continued to run the ball well on their next drive, but a fourth and short drop by Josh Reynolds ended their first drive of the third quarter, allowing the Niners a chance to make it a one score game.

To do so, they desperately needed the passing game to wake up and it did in a truly wild way as Purdy threw what looked to be his second interception of the game, only for Lions defensive back Kindle Vildor to have it go through his hands, bounce off of his facemask, and into the diving arms of Brandon Aiyuk.

It’s a wild swing, as what should’ve been a pick turned into a huge play, with Aiyuk being touched by Vildor on his way down meaning it was not a touchdown.

A few plays later, Aiyuk found paydirt after shaking free from Cam Sutton, with Purdy finding him for a much more conventional completion in the end zone.

Things continued to swing in favor of the Niners from there, as Lions rookie running back Jahmyr Gibbs fumbled on the first play of their next drive, handing San Francisco the ball back in Detroit territory, down just seven points.