Inexperienced Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers was beneath stress and struggled towards the 49ers after a landing on their opening possession.
It was Aaron Rodgers in all his glory, main the Inexperienced Bay Packers on a 10-play, 69-yard drive for a landing the primary time he touched the ball.
He stored discovering Davante Adams for first downs, and when A.J. Dillon barrelled into the tip zone on a 6-yard run, the 49ers protection wasn’t even in a position to get Inexperienced Bay to 3rd down.
Center linebacker Fred Warner was indignant. Warner is the 49ers defensive chief and has become the sort of non secular voice that Ronnie Lott was once when the 49ers had been successful Tremendous Bowls beneath Invoice Walsh and George Seifert.
“I’m not going to lie. I used to be fairly upset,” Warner stated after the 49ers beat the Packers 13-10 Saturday evening at Lambeau Area to advance to the NFC Championship Recreation. “Everybody was going round saying, ‘We’re good, we’re good,’ and I needed to simply attempt to gentle a fireplace beneath everyone. I needed to allow them to know, they’re not higher than us. We have to buckle down and dial in. They're an excellent offense however I do know we’re an excellent protection too.’ That was unacceptable for certain.’ ”
What adopted was a defensive masterpiece that ranks with something within the historical past of a storied franchise. Rodgers, a first-team All-Professional and certain Most Precious Participant, bought the ball 9 extra instances with the next outcomes: fumble, punt, punt, punt, finish of half, punt, discipline objective, blocked punt, punt.
The temperature was within the low teenagers, which is simply the way in which Rodgers says he likes it. Slows everyone else down. However the 49ers stayed after Rodgers all through and did what appeared to be the unimaginable. Rodgers himself wasn’t solely certain what to make of what occurred in what he conceded could be his final recreation in a Inexperienced Bay uniform.
“Slightly numb for certain,” Rodgers informed reporters following the sport. “Didn’t assume it was going to finish like this. Disenchanted within the offense. Ten factors just isn't sufficient. The protection was excellent, particular groups harm us.”
Rodgers was speaking in regards to the Inexperienced Bay protection, however it was the one on the alternative sideline that got here up large when it mattered most.
Of all of the pathways to victory for the 49ers, bottling up Rodgers was probably the most unlikely. He's coming off what could be his greatest season, with 37 landing passes towards 4 interceptions after main Inexperienced Bay to a 13-4 document and the highest seed within the NFC. Rodgers completed 20 of 29 for 225 yards, however a lot of the injury got here on the opening drive and a 75-yard move to Aaron Jones late within the half that arrange a 39-yard Mason Crosby discipline objective try that was blocked by Jimmie Ward.
🐻 on the transfer. @nbsmallerbear SACK #SFvsGB on FOX/49ers App pic.twitter.com/pdgOYvx03z
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) January 23, 2022
Inexperienced Bay had made it to the 14-yard line, an space the place Rodgers is especially deadly squeezing off passes into tight home windows, however Nick Bosa bought to him for a strip-sack. That preceded the blocked discipline objective.
The Packers had been transferring on their second possession after the opening landing as properly, reaching the 49ers’ 42. It was then that Warner chopped the ball free from tight finish Marcedes Lewis. It was recovered by teammate Dre Greenlaw.
The 49ers, in the meantime, had been flailing on offense, and the protection needed to come up enormous to have an opportunity for the win. On the finish of the half, Inexperienced Bay had a 205-to-58 benefit in whole offense however led solely 7-0.
“That first drive, the way in which it began out, didn’t look like it was too arduous on them with the weather,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan stated. “However after that, the protection was unbelievable.”
Within the second half, the Packers ran 22 performs and gained 55 yards. Rodgers was sacked 5 instances in all, twice by defensive deal with Arik Armstread, twice by Bosa and as soon as by finish Samson Ebukam. The Packers averaged 3.7 yards per keep on the bottom and gained 106 yards.
Whereas Warner stated “there was some yelling happening” after the opening drive, Ward defined it as being utterly rational relatively than manic.
“Fred being the defensive chief, he calmed everyone down and informed them, ‘All proper, that’s the perfect drive they’re going to have this complete recreation,’ ” Ward stated. “And I really feel prefer it was.”
Rodgers, a quarterback who has seen each protection and stress, has seldom regarded as confused and ineffective as he did within the second half. Ward credited defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans, who's constructing himself a pleasant resume for potential head teaching alternatives.
“DeMeco referred to as some nice calls and we had been disguising fairly properly, and we confused him,” Ward stated.
For a lot of the season, it didn’t seem the 49ers would method a 2019 unit on an NFC championship season that made it to the Tremendous Bowl. Seems they could be higher. Armstead, since transferring inside, has performed on the stage of DeForest Buckner, traded to Baltimore following the season.
When Inexperienced Bay reached the 49ers’ 8-yard line early within the fourth quarter, it was Armstead who sacked Rodgers and compelled Crosby’s 33-yard discipline objective when a landing would have put the Packers up 14-3.
“We had been enjoying the most well liked group within the league,” Armstead stated. “It took numerous grit and relentlessness to get the ‘W.’ They bought a great drive on us and we didn’t blink. We knew we had been going to must go on the market and get stops to win this recreation and it was going to be on us defensively. We simply stored enjoying, then settled in and began enjoying good protection.”
Whereas Rodgers was on the dropping facet addressing one other potential offseason drama — he had his contract renegotiated with an exit clause following the season — it was starting to sink in to Warner that the 49ers had completed one thing extraordinary.
“We come into Lambeau towards the No. 1 seed within the NFC, it’s snowing, MVP quarterback, among the best receivers enjoying the sport, excessive powered offense,” Warner stated. “We maintain them to 10 factors. That’s unbelievable, particularly the way in which it’s began. I don’t know if everybody is aware of the gravity of it now, however it’s one thing we’ll look again on for certain.”