Take no prisoners, make no apologies.
The Green Bay Packers gained a significant measure of satisfaction Thursday night at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California by rolling over the San Francisco 49ers 34-17 to reach 6-2 at the halfway point of the 2020 season. The 2019 season was spoiled by the 49ers who dominated the Pack 37-8 in the regular season and then denied Matt LaFleur’s club a trip to the Super Bowl with another overwhelming 37-20 victory in the NFC Championship Game last January.
Granted, the lineup San Francisco Head Coach Kyle Shanahan had to put on the field this time was a shell of the group that was denied a title by Kansas City in Super Bowl LIV, but to the Packers credit, nicked up as they were, they grabbed control of the game early and built a 34-3 with just over six minutes to play.
The 49ers were without more than a half dozen key players, from quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to tight end George Kittle, running back Raheem Mostert, defensive end Nick Bosa and defensive back Richard Sherman. Thanks to a mid-week positive coronavirus test for receiver Kendrick Bourne, he sat along with starting left tackle Trent Williams and rookie receiver Brandon Aiyuk who were considered high risk close contacts.
But the Packers had to deal with COVID-19 as well after A.J. Dillon’s positive test on Monday. Jamaal Williams and Kamal Martin were placed on the reserve list too leaving Green Bay perilously thin at running back. All-Pro tackle David Bakhtiari was inactive for the second straight week and starting corner Kevin King missed his fourth straight game.
During the contest, the defense lost standout corner Jaire Alexander early with a concussion. Running back Dexter Williams, linebacker Krys Barnes and tackle Rick Wagner also left with injuries. Wagner’s departure forced the Packers to overhaul their offensive line at halftime.
With all that going on, one constant remained. That was the connection of Aaron Rodgers to Davante Adams. Once again that tandem dominated as Adams caught 10 passes for 173 yards and his 8th touchdown of the year, one of four TD passes for Rodgers who finished with a glittering passer rating of 147.2.
The duo got the Packers on the board on the opening series, the 8th straight game points were produced from the first possession. Adams had to make a twisting catch on the 36 yard throw, just dropping his elbow in bounds in the end zone. The play had to be reviewed but was confirmed and Green Bay jumped out to the 7-0 lead.
San Francisco thought they tied the game but backup quarterback Nick Mullens’ four yard TD throw to tight end River Cracraft was overturned on replay review leading to Robbie Gould’s 22 yard field goal.
The maligned Green Bay defense created a turnover early in the second quarter when Preston Smith pressured and hit Mullens and the floating ball was intercepted by Raven Greene, just the third pick and the first since week two for the unit. His return to the 38 was cashed in as Rodgers off play action found a wide open Marcedes Lewis for a one yard touchdown and a 14-3 lead.
Just inside the two minute warning, the offense hit a big play. Marquez Valdes-Scantling who dropped a third down pass earlier, sprinted past safety Marcell Harris and snared a 52 yard touchdown from Rodgers to make it 21-3 at halftime.
A 49 yard catch and run by Adams in the third quarter set up Valdes-Scantling’s second TD catch. On third and goal from the one, Rodgers broke out of the pocket and rolling to his right, hit MVS who made a route adjustment to shake a defender in the corner of the end zone.
Za’Darius Smith reached Mullens for a sack that jarred the ball loose and recovered the fumble at the 49ers 47 yard line. Green Bay drove to the one but stalled and Mason Crosby hit a 19 yard field goal.
San Francisco got another big play from Richie James, a wide open 47 yarder (he finished with 9 catches for 184 yards). But on 4th and goal from the one, Mullens tried a quarterback sneak but was driven back by linebacker Ty Summers.
Green Bay then marched to the San Francisco 35 where Crosby belted a 53 yard field goal, his 11th without a miss this season, to cap the Packer scoring.
The 49ers were able to beat two busted coverages for big plays and score a pair of touchdowns in the final five minutes, James hauling in a 41 yard scoring pass and former Viking Jerrick McKinnon slicing in from the one with just :04 left.
LaFleur admitted the circumstances were unusual with a short week, the virus and a wounded San Francisco team coached by his best friends, Shanahan, defensive coordinator Robert Saleh and not to mention his brother, passing game coordinator Mike LaFleur, but he was proud of how his team put the Minnesota disappointment last Sunday behind them and took care of business:
Aaron Jones made his return to the field after missing a couple of games with a calf injury and he touched the ball on Green Bay’s first four snaps at the start, gaining 37 yards on two rushes and two receptions. He finished with 58 yards on 15 carries and five receptions. LaFleur admitted that was a few more snaps than he had planned but backup Dexter Williams left with a knee injury leaving only Tyler Ervin at the position.
The versatile Ervin was the unsung hero according to Rodgers, carrying the ball 8 times for 24 yards and catching four passes for 48 more including a key, 24 yard screen in the third quarter.
Rodgers put up fabulous numbers again, 25 of 31 for 305 yards with four scores, giving him 24 on the season. Afterwards, he talked of how the team stayed focused on the task at hand, beating the 49ers even though the opponent was almost unrecognizable from the team that roughed him up twice last year.
Rodgers was sacked only once, on the final play of the first half as the offensive line once again continued it’s strong and remarkably versatile play. Without Bakhtiari, Billy Turner started again at left tackle but when Wagner left with a knee injury, a major shuffle took place in the second half. Elgton Jenkins moved to left tackle, Turner flipped to the right side and rookie Jon Runyan stepped in at left guard and the unit didn’t miss a beat. Late in the game, Jenkins even handled a few snaps at center. LaFleur said for Jenkins, just a second year pro, to play three positions in one game is unheard of in this league.
As good as Rodgers was, the best player on the field just might have been Adams. It was his third game among 6 played where he reached double digits in receptions. He now has 53 catches for 675 yards and a league high 8 touchdown catches. A Pro Bowl player a year ago, he just might have ascended to the perch belonging to the best wide receiver in the game. Adams won’t argue.
Under LaFleur, the Packers still haven’t lost back to back games, recovering from the discouraging and admittedly lackluster effort against the Vikings at home a week ago. They now have 10 days to hopefully rid the locker room of the coronavirus, heal up the growing number of injured players and get ready to host the Jacksonville Jaguars at Lambeau Field on November 15.
Za’Darius Smith talked to the team on their way from the bus to Levi’s Stadium Thursday night. He said remember how it felt walking out of the stadium to the bus a year ago? Regardless of the circumstances, they didn’t have that feeling again. It was a business trip where the Packers took care of business.
