Sam Phalen is one of the Final Four in Survivor 47! After getting blindsided during episode 8 when his top ally Sierra Wright was voted out, Sam's odds of making the Final Four seemed slim. Now, Sam is one challenge away from The Final Three, but he might have to do a lot more to win Survivor 47.
Heading into part two of the Survivor 47 finale, Rachel LaMont is the runaway favorite to win. Sue Smey and Teeny Chirichillo don't have much of a case yet, so it's basically between Rachel and Sam, the two former Gata tribe members. After Rachel saved her herself with a brilliant hidden immunity idol play at the Final Six and then won immunity at the Final Five, Rachel should win if she makes The Final Three. She has three individual immunities after the merge, too.
In other words, Sam needs to make a few big moves in the finale to make sure that he has a realistic chance of winning Survivor 47: taking out Rachel.
How Sam can ensure Rachel does not make The Final Three
To start, Sam needs to win the final immunity challenge. Sam has won a few reward challenges, but he hasn't won immunity all season long. I don't think he meant to lose every challenge, but he appeared to turn it on when food was on the line vs. when immunity was on the line. To win Survivor 47, he needs at least one immunity win for his resume.
Along with that, it gives Sam a level-up against Rachel. If Sam can go toe-to-toe with her and win, I think that'll look good for the jury.
But, that's not all Sam has to do.
Sam can't just choose Teeny or Sue and then let the other make fire against Rachel. That's just not a smart move on his part unless he's fine finishing runner-up. It also might give Sue enough points with the jury to beat him at the Final Tribal Council. She would then have another feather in her cap, which already includes finding a hidden immunity idol, winning individual immunity, and playing a clean-ish game.
If Sam really wants to win, he needs to win individual immunity AND beat Rachel at fire. It's the only way he can make sure he's the winner heading into The Final Three. Any other scenario leaves far too much to chance for Sam.
Sam needs to go full Chris Underwood in Survivor: Edge of Extinction to make up for the large deficit he faces. It's 28-3 in the Super Bowl and he's the New England Patriots against the Atlanta Falcons, but it's not halftime. It's the two-minute warning. He's running out of time to make moves. And, really, Sam only has three moves left: win immunity, win fire, and convince the jury he played better than everyone else. If he doesn't win two of the three, and probably all three, he's not going to win. He's that fire behind at the end of the game.
And, honestly, the same can be said for Teeny and Sue. If anyone really wants to beat Rachel, they need to beat her in immunity and then probably beat her at fire, too. Anything short of that, they will finish second, third, or fourth.
Rachel has played too good of a game, especially lately, for any of the other three players to feel confident competing against her at Final Tribal. If she wins immunity or wins fire, she could be a unanimous winner.
We'll see how it all goes down in part two of the Survivor 47 finale on Wednesday, Dec. 18!