49ers' Charvarius Ward sends message to Eagles ahead of rematch

Add cornerback Charvarius Ward to the list of San Francisco 49ers players looking forward to the NFC Championship Game rematch at the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 13 on Dec. 3. 

"Yeah, I'm excited," Ward said about that upcoming showdown at Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field during an appearance on "The Tracy Sandler Show," as shared by David Bonilla of 49ers WebZone. "It's going to be lit because it's at their place." 

The 49ers famously lost quarterbacks Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo to injuries last season but then found a savior in rookie Brock Purdy, who won his first five regular-season starts and then guided San Francisco to the conference title game. However, Purdy went down with a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow versus the Eagles on Jan. 29, and fourth-choice option Josh Johnson suffered a concussion during that contest. 

The Eagles ultimately crushed the quarterback-less 49ers 31-7 to book a trip to Super Bowl LVII. 

All-Pro defensive end Nick Bosa, star running back Christian McCaffrey and dual-threat offensive weapon Deebo Samuel are among 49ers players who have openly lamented the fact that San Francisco realistically had little chance of doing anything of note offensively during the second half against the Eagles. Per Zion Olojede of Complex Sports, Samuel said this past spring that the 49ers fell to the Eagles "because we played with 10 people." 

Needless to say, San Francisco players want another shot at Philadelphia when both teams are, ideally, more whole. 

"...May the best man win," Ward said during the interview. "May the best man win come that day, and I'm looking forward to it. It's going to be fun. Competition always brings out the best in a man, so we going to see who the better team is that day."

Purdy underwent elbow surgery on March 10 but seemingly is on track to start the regular-season opener at the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sept. 10. Lance and free-agency signing Sam Darnold will compete during training camp and the preseason for the right to play in Week 1 if Purdy isn't cleared by then.