Early struggles shaped the 49ers. Here’s why the Packers haven’t seen this team before
Earlier in the season, the San Francisco 49ers looked like they weren’t going anywhere.
They fell to 3-5 following an ugly loss Nov. 7 to the Arizona Cardinals and backup quarterback Colt McCoy. It was their fifth loss in six weeks and third straight at home. Many were calling for backup rookie quarterback Trey Lance to unseat Jimmy Garoppolo, while it seemed clear San Francisco lacked the leaders it had during the Super Bowl run less than two years prior.
A lot has changed following that slow start.
San Francisco won two straight must-have games over the Texans and Rams to make the playoffs. On Sunday the 49ers upset the Dallas Cowboys on the road. Now they find themselves in another big game against a familiar foe: the Green Bay Packers, under the lights at Lambeau Field on Saturday night.
The 2021 season in a nutshell: the 49ers went from a bottom-feeder to one of the final four teams in the NFC.
If pressure makes diamonds or bursts pipes, head coach Kyle Shanahan’s team enters Saturday like a glimmering jewel. They’ve been hardened by their experience, by all the doubt that came while the team fell below .500 midway through the schedule. That adversity polished Shanahan’s team into a legitimate playoff contender.
“I think your experiences are what make you who you are, in life and definitely as a team,” Shanahan said this week. “Being 3-5, I don’t wish that on anyone, but when you can fight through it and I always feel when bad things happen or things you would label a bad thing, they can be such a good thing if you can get through them.
“When you have to do it as a team and when you get through it with a group of people, it makes you stronger as an individual. It makes your whole team so much stronger. And we got through a lot of stuff this year and I feel that struggle has made us who we are and that’s why I feel like there’s not a situation we’re going to ever panic in. We feel like we’ve been in it and we believe that we have a chance to win any game we play in until there’s zero on the clock.”
Shanahan’s group is 8-3 since that loss to Arizona, including the victory in Dallas in the wild card round. And given their postseason history against Green Bay — three straight wins, including the memorable blowout in the NFC Championship game in 2020 — the 49ers have confidence despite entering the weekend as clear underdogs against the No. 1 seed in the conference.
“We’re just playing complementary football now,” linebacker Fred Warner said. “It’s just offense, defense, special teams working together as one. ... I think that’s why you’re seeing what you’re seeing. The camaraderie too. It’s crazy. I think as it’s gone throughout the season, going through hard times makes you closer as a group. I feel like that’s also a big deal too, especially this time of year when we’re going to be in those tough games, tough situations like we’ve been in the last few weeks, and finding a way to win.”
San Francisco had little margin for error after falling to 3-5. Unlike the Cowboys before Sunday’s game, the 49ers were used to urgent situations, needing to win their final two regular season games just to make the playoffs. Dallas, meanwhile, cruised through arguably the worst division in the NFL with a 6-0 record. The Cowboys hadn’t beaten a playoff team aside from the No. 7-seed Eagles since the Patriots in October. That was apparent in San Francisco’s victory.
“Putting that pressure on your team early, it creates a mindset,” Garoppolo said. “It creates an atmosphere in the locker room of a sense of urgency that we have to win now and we have to make some plays. So I think that early on in the year, you obviously don’t want to start 3-5, but it prepares your mind for everything that you’re going to go against later in the season. And we’ve been in playoff mode for a while now and coming off two big games in a row, it’s just every one of these games is big, that’s the type of season we’re in right now.”
A rematch against Green Bay
One of the early-season losses came at the hands of the Packers in the home opener Week 3. The 49ers took a lead inside the final minute on a touchdown pass to fullback Kyle Juszczyk, but the defense allowed Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers to lead Green Bay into field goal range in just 37 seconds to hit a game-winning 51-yard kick as time expired.
The 49ers went on to lose at home against Seattle, on the road to the Cardinals with Lance starting while Garoppolo was injured and then at home again to the Indianapolis Colts. They beat the Chicago Bears before dropping that game to McCoy and Arizona a week later.
Since then, the offense has taken on a drastically different form the Packers will have to adjust to. Back in Week 3, rookie running back Trey Sermon led the 49ers with 31 rushing yards on three carries. Standout rookie Elijah Mitchell missed the game with a shoulder injury. All-Pro wideout Deebo Samuel had just four rushing attempts through three games before later setting a record for rushing touchdowns by a receiver with eight — while having one of the most unique seasons in league history.
Receiver Brandon Aiyuk had five catches for 43 yards during the first three weeks. Over the final eight games of the regular season he averaged over four receptions and 71 yards per game. He led the team with five catches and 66 yards in Dallas.
Newfound No. 3 receiver Jauan Jennings had no targets in the early-season game against Green Bay. He scored two crucial touchdowns, including the one to tie the game at the end of regulation, in the must-win Week 18 contest against the Rams. He added three third-down conversions against the Cowboys.
Defensively, rookie cornerback Ambry Thomas has played a significant role in slowing down two of the best receiving corps in the NFC over the last two weeks. And slot cornerback K’Waun Williams, who was injured early in the Week 3 game, is back in the lineup and had a third-quarter interception of Dak Prescott on Sunday that set up the game-deciding score. A pass rush that was largely ineffective against Rodgers Week 3 had five sacks in Dallas.
The 49ers have evolved since their early-season doldrums. And they have a new infusion of characters that weren’t on the 2019 team who have brought fresh perspectives to the locker room.
Shanahan said center Alex Mack, playing in his first season with the 49ers, spoke to the rookies ahead of the Rams game noting he didn’t play in the postseason until his eighth year in the NFL. All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams, who spent his first nine years with Washington, experienced his first career postseason victory Sunday.
“You don’t get in these situations very much,” Shanahan said. “You can’t guarantee it every year and guys are going to look back and hope they gave their all in these moments. And I think we’ve got a team filled with different leaders, filled with different experience and I think collectively that’s why our team really understands what this moment is.”
Garoppolo pained by shoulder, thumb
If the 49ers are going to pull off a third straight road upset, they’ll have to do it with another injury to their quarterback.
Garoppolo confirmed Wednesday his right shoulder sprain suffered in the second quarter in Dallas affected his ability to throw in the second half. He helped San Francisco get out to a 16-7 lead at halftime while completing 11 of 14 for 133 yards. But he struggled after the break, completing just 5 of 11 for 39 yards and an interception that nearly swung the game back to the Cowboys.
“I mean the shoulder, yeah, being a quarterback it affects every throw,” Garoppolo said. “So it definitely had some impact, but if I’m out there and I’m being put in that spot, I still have to make the plays that I normally make. So no excuses or anything like that. The injury is what it is. We’re all dealing with stuff now.”
Garoppolo said the injury came during a hit that took him to ground. He was unable to brace his fall out of fear of re-injuring his right thumb, which he tore the ulnar collateral ligament during the Jan. 2 loss to the Texans.
“I just got thrown down, went to put my hand out and sort of had in my mind if my thumb hit I didn’t know what was going to happen,” Garoppolo said. “So I tried to catch it with my elbow a little bit and just jammed the shoulder up.”
Is Garoppolo confident about his ability to suit up Saturday?
“Yeah, we’ll feel it out throughout the week, but yeah, just feeling good right now,” Garoppolo said.
