Week 12 - With only a handful of games remaining on the NFL's regular season schedule, things are getting dire for the (5-5) San Francisco 49ers who are toeing the line of must-win territory as they trail the Cardinals and sit tied with the Rams and Seahawks in a crowded NFC Western Division. However, the timing of these must-win games would be rather unfortunate for the Niners who took to the road on Sunday to kickoff the first leg of a tough two-game road trip against the (7-3) Green Bay Packers and (8-2) Buffalo Bills, two of the better teams in all of football. Making matters worse, Kyle Shanahan's 49ers would be without several key players including four Pro Bowlers in defensive-end Nick Bosa, left-tackle Trent Williams, cornerback Charvarius Ward and quarterback Brock Purdy. With Purdy missing practice during the week due to a sore shoulder, coach Shanahan announced backup QB Brandon Allen would be next in line to start, something he hadn't done since 2021 as a member of the Cincinnati Bengals.
Making his first start in three years, Niner fans had a feeling Sunday's game would not be a pretty sight while going up against a hungry Green Bay team looking to avenge their playoff loss suffered at the hands of San Francisco a season ago. But nothing would prepare them for the lopsided struggle that ensued on the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field. As bad as the Niners were on offense, their defense was even worse as they committed 10 missed tackles in the first quarter alone, and 15 in the first half, both the most by any team in the NFL this season. That number would climb to 19 missed tackles in total by the end of the game. It would be a forgetful day in all facets for the 49er defense as they saw their streak of 55 consecutive games without allowing a 100+ yard rusher come to an end, snapping the longest streak in the NFL since 1955. Green Bay's offense opened the game with a 15-play, 77-yard drive that ate up nearly seven and a half minutes, ending in an 11-yard touchdown pass from Packers QB Jordan Love to tight-end Tucker Kraft. Meanwhile, the 49ers punted on each of their first two drives and didn't convert a first down until midway thru the second quarter.
San Francisco also struggled with penalties on Sunday, committing nine penalties in total, including three first half penalties by rookie Dominic Puni who had committed only one penalty all season long entering Sunday. Trailing 17-0, the 49ers would finally piece together their first successful drive on offense, capped off by a 3-yard receiving touchdown by tight-end George Kittle. After missing last week's game with a hamstring injury, Kittle returned to the field picking up right where he left off by hauling in his league-leading 15th red zone reception and his eighth red zone touchdown on the season, the most in the NFL. The touchdown grab would also move Kittle into No. 3 on the franchise's all-time receptions list, giving him 507 career receptions, trailing only Jerry Rice and Terrell Owens. After a penalty-riddled first half, the 49ers received the ball to open the third quarter and appeared to have stolen some momentum after an 87-yard kick return by Deebo Samuel. But low and behold, a holding penalty would negate the potential game-shifting return. Instead of setting up shop at Green Bay's 8-yard line, San Francisco would be called back to their own 21-yard line and eventually turned the ball over on downs.
The 49er offense would cross midfield on their next possession, but a high pass into traffic intended for Samuel went over his head and into the hands of a Packers defender. Any chance of a fourth quarter comeback like the one they pulled off against Green Bay in the playoffs last season, went down the drain after fumbles on consecutive drives by the San Francisco offense. A strip-sack fumble on Brandon Allen and a rare miscue by running back Christian McCaffrey would result in a pair of touchdowns by the Packer offense which cashed in 21-points off San Francisco turnovers in total. As for the 49er defense, defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen's unit was unable to force any turnovers on Sunday with the exception of a late turnover on downs with just over a minute remaining in regulation. Packers QB Jordan Love entered Sunday's game having thrown at least one interception in every game this season, but steered clear against the Niners despite two near mistakes on dropped picks by San Francisco's Renardo Green and Ji'Ayir Brown.
While San Francisco's struggles inside the red zone are well documented this season, Green Bay has been equally as bad this year and ranked 27th in red zone percentage entering Sunday. However, they converted 4-for-4 in red zone trips against the Niners, including three rushing touchdowns by running back Josh Jacobs, his third career 3 touchdown game. Jacobs entered Sunday's meeting red-hot with 90+ scrimmage yards in six straight games, tied for the longest active streak in the NFL and third in the league in rushing with 838 yards. He kept that streak alive with a busy 106-yard performance, helping Green Bay score a season-high 38-points as the 49ers lost, 38-10. In the rivalry which spans 74 games between the two teams, the 28-point loss for San Francisco would mark their largest loss in the series' history. 49ers QB Brandon Allen did outproduce Jordan Love in passing yards: 199 to 163 but tallied only 1 touchdown and two turnovers compared to Love's 2 touchdowns and no turnovers. George Kittle led all receivers with 82 yards and a receiving touchdown on a game-high six receptions.
Unfortunately for San Francisco, the loss would result in a dramatic drop in their playoff probability, dropping their playoff hopes from 46% had they won on Sunday, compared to just 15% with the loss. The 31% differential in win from loss is the largest in the NFL this week.
Week 13 Preview - After falling to 5-6 on the season, the 49ers will have another tough one on Sunday when they take a trip to the northeast for a date with the (9-2) Buffalo Bills. With snow expected in the forecast and the elements likely to play a factor, the Niners will need a much better performance on the ground from Christian McCaffrey and company, especially after San Francisco was outgained 169 to 44 in rushing yards in Week 12 against the Packers. They'll also need a much cleaner game on defense against Bills quarterback Josh Allen who is currently in the MVP discussion as Buffalo trails only the (10-1) Kansas City Chiefs who they recently defeated for the top seed in the AFC. San Francisco's playoff hopes are fading fast, but if anything can catapult them back into the discussion it would be a road win against a stout Bills team that has won six straight and is undefeated at home this season (5-0). It's not exactly clear whether or not Brock Purdy will return on Sunday as he continues to battle shoulder soreness which has kept him limited at practice up to this point. If not, another tough day at the office could be in store for backup Brandon Allen.
The 49ers did receive some good news on the injury front as linebacker Dre Greenlaw who's been out all season with a torn Achilles suffered on the sideline during February's Super Bowl, is expected to join team practices this week in a limited role before returning to game action in the coming weeks. San Francisco's defense has been nowhere near as dominant as they were a season ago and a lot of that can be attributed to the absence of Greenlaw who when healthy, provides arguably the best 1-2 punch at linebacker in all of football with Fred Warner.
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