Three Ways The San Francisco 49ers Can Be Beaten by The Green Bay Packers
The San Francisco 49ers ranked second in the NFL in total offense (398.4) and third in scoring offense (28.9) this season.
The 49ers were third in scoring defense (17.5) and eighth in total defense (303.9).
In other words, they have very few flaws
There is a path, though, for the Green Bay Packers (10-8) — a 10.0-point underdog — to stun the 49ers (12-5) in their NFC divisional playoff game Saturday night.
The 49ers ranked third in rushing yards allowed (89.7) and seventh in sacks (48.0).
One area where San Francisco didn’t dominate, though, was passing defense, where it ranked 12th allowing 214.2 yards per game. On the flip side, Green Bay quarterback Jordan Love is averaging 269.1 passing yards in his last nine games.
The 49ers could be vulnerable in the middle of the field, where Pro Bowl safety Talanoa Hufanga suffered a torn ACL on Nov. 19. Rookie Ji’Ayir Brown has played well, but he’s certainly not in the same class as Hufanga, a first-team All-Pro in 2022.
Green Bay, on the other hand, can hurt teams from several spots in the passing game. The Packers have six players with at least 30 receptions and nine between 200 and 800 receiving yards.
This could be a game where the Packers try attacking the middle of the field with players like tight ends Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft, or wideouts Romeo Doubs and Jayden Reed.
- “I’ve definitely been part of teams where we’ve tried to force feed a guy the ball and sometimes that does not work out in your favor,” Green Bay coach Matt LaFleur said. “Other times it does. I think Jordan would tell you, he’s got confidence in whoever’s out there. All those guys have proven to make plays for us throughout the course of the season
Former Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers always held a grudge against the 49ers, the team he idolized as a boy.
- San Francisco, which had the No. 1 pick in the 2005 draft, passed on Rodgers. That led to a free fall that saw Rodgers plummet toNo. 24 overall.
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