49ers’ blowout loss to the Packers on Thursday night culminates a terrible week
The San Francisco 49ers had an awful week.
Wednesday, three days after getting shellacked by the Seattle Seahawks and two days after it was announced star tight end George Kittle and franchise quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo would be out the foreseeable future, they had a COVID-19 situation to deal with.
“Then coming off the short week, definitely threw us for a loop,” quarterback Nick Mullens said.
The team was forced to close down its facility as it placed receiver Kendrick Bourne on the reserve/COVID-19 list, and then later in the day added three more players to the list — left tackle Trent Williams, rookie receiver Brandon Aiyuk and fellow wideout Deebo Samuel, who was already ruled out because of an injury for Thursday’s game against the Green Bay Packers.
Williams, Aiyuk and Samuel were considered to be at high risk of contracting the coronavirus after the 49ers and the league conducted contact tracing to avoid a full-fledged COVID outbreak at their facility.
With the facility shut down, Shanahan ran red-zone installation meetings from his home office like he did in the spring.
“It was right back to quarantine, basically at home. I was there with my family, still homeschooling. It seemed like I went back in time three months ago and did everything from there,” Shanahan said.
Shanahan said the team was allowed to re-enter the facility later Wednesday night after the contact tracing completed. The team held a walkthrough and had to adjust without three players they were expecting to rely on heavily against the Packers with very little time to prepare.
“There’s not enough time to change everything,” Shanahan said. “It’s the night before the game and guys weren’t practicing any ways because of the short week. So, we just got the receivers, reshuffled them and we walked through a lot last night and I think (receivers coach) Wes (Welker) grabbed a couple of them and walked through today before the game.”
Packers trounce 49ers in rematch
And then they had to play a game Thursday night without all those players, on top of the injuries they had already been dealing with. It was a rematch of last season’s NFC title game, no less. But it didn’t feel like it Thursday as the game was in an empty Levi’s Stadium. All seven players who touched the ball offensively for San Francisco in January’s game were either injured or no longer on the team Thursday.
The 49ers on Thursday lost to the Packers 34-17 in a game that wasn’t as close as the score indicated. Green Bay had a 34-3 lead midway through the fourth quarter before two late touchdowns from the home team.
To summarize, the 49ers on offense were without their starting quarterback, All-Pro tight end, left tackle, top three receivers, top three running backs and top two centers. They switched Daniel Brunskill from right guard to center, with Tom Compton getting his first start at right guard, essentially making Brunskill their fourth-string center, and the third center they’ve used this season.
“We knew it was going to be a challenge,” Shanahan said. “We knew at the start of the week it was going to be a challenge and then losing those three guys yesterday was obviously a bigger challenge, but I still thought we could have a game and still thought we could play better than we did tonight. Being down like that and not being at our best and going against a good team like that, usually that’s usually what happens, but I know we could have done better.”
With the loss, the 49ers fell to 4-5 and don’t have a whole lot to be encouraged about given the state of the roster. With Kittle likely done for the season and Garoppolo expected to miss six weeks, with a chance to come back in late December, a playoff push looks more and more like a pipe dream.
Mullens was shaky throughout, though his stat line wasn’t terrible. He completed 22 of 35 throws for 291 yards and a touchdown, though he turned the ball over twice via fumble and interception. Justin Skule, in place of Williams at left tackle, had a rough game in pass protection.
Saints are next, Sherman will return
On the bright side, San Francisco has a long weekend of rest before traveling to New Orleans Nov. 15. Their next game after that won’t be until Nov. 29 against the Rams following the bye, meaning they’ll have an extended opportunity to lick their wounds and get players back.
Namely, All-Pro cornerback Richard Sherman, who’s been out since Week 1 with a calf injury.
The 49ers defense struggled again to contain one of the best receivers in the league, continuing a season-long theme against elite wideouts. Four days after Emmanuel Moseley was torched by D.K. Metcalf of the Seahawks, Davante Adams recorded 10 catches (on 12 targets) for 173 yards and a touchdown.
Aaron Rodgers (25 of 31, 305 yards, four touchdowns, 147.2 passer rating) was subbed for backup Tim Boyle in the fourth quarter because the game was so lopsided.
“Aaron and Davante, they’re the same as they always are to me,” Shanahan said. “They’re two great players and they’ve both been doing it for a very long time. I knew going into the game that would be a huge challenge.”
Beforehand, the 49ers promoted six players from the practice squad — offensive lineman Tony Bergstrom, running back Austin Walter, receiver River Cracraft, safety Johnathan Cyprien, tight end Daniel Helm and receiver Kevin White — and had just three players inactive, signaling the ridiculous state of the team’s injury situation. The six players promoted from the practice squad before a game were the most by any team all season, according to ESPN.
Shanahan’s message to his team after the game?
“Heal up,” defensive tackle D.J. Jones said.
