The Five Craziest Things About the 49ers Win

Make-A-List Monday tackles football. Get it? Sigh.

I’m a diehard 49er fan, and I’m probably STILL not totally convinced the 49ers won in Green Bay on Saturday night, except they definitely did. It was one of the weirdest, most epic games I’ve ever seen and I’ve been watching 49er games for 40 years.

I never thought they couldn’t win the game. After all, the score never really got out of hand. But until the blocked punt TD, I kept wondering how they were going to win. I couldn’t figure it out. And then…suddenly, my entire group text was all of us realizing at once that this COULD HAPPEN.

And it did. And it was glorious. But there’s no denying it was also crazy.

San Francisco 49ers @49ers

“We not done yet”😤 @fred_warner

Here then, are the craziest things about the game.

• The 49ers weren’t penalized for pass interference. This has a larger scope that is that the biggest mismatch of the game was the Packers passing offense against the 49ers secondary. That was made even more so when rookie CB Ambry Thomas was ruled out of the game before it started, nursing a bone bruise. The 49ers led the league in pass interference calls, and often had to commit that penalty because their cornerbacks were so badly beat. But, for whatever reason, the Packers rarely tested them. And when they did - to 49ers fans horror, starter Dontae Johnson got banged up and Josh Norman came in, and Rodgers immediately threw his way twice - they avoided the flag. Credit DC DeMeco Ryans for clearly scheming coverages that confused Aaron Rodgers and didn’t allow any easy big passes. Credit also the frigid weather which turned into a small blizzard in the second half. But if you had given me literally any bet that involved the 49ers getting flagged for this at least once, that would have been easy money in my eyes. But no.

  Bob Sturm @SportsSturm

  Rodgers playoff demise the last two years is different from how he normally plays, but similar to his playoff games. He stops trusting everything and goes into hero mode. This is the last throw. 3rd and 11. WIDE OPEN Lazard, but he fires to double covered Adams.

  Jordan Severson @Thrilla3232

  Can we give #JoshNorman some additional credit for coming in and shutting Adams down while D.Johnson was out. Way to step up. #SeasonVet #FTTB @49ers #SFvsGB

  

• The 49ers offensive line solved its problems. In the first half, the Green Bay pass rush was terrifying. Tackle Tom Compton, filling in for injured Mike McGlinchey, was fairly awful. He got beat time after time, and QB Jimmy Garoppolo had no time to throw. And then, suddenly, they figured it out. Again, this comes back to halftime adjustments - they had George Kittle and other TE’s helping in blocking, but they also called plays that worked and got the ball out faster. The 49ers offense was in NO way solid or impressive, but those crippling sacks and QB hits suddenly disappeared.

• The 49ers had the better special teams unit. All season long, the worst unit on the squad has been special teams. They got beat for fake punts by the Seahawks and Cowboys, and have just been sloppy. But there’s bad, and then there’s….the Packers. The 49ers blocked a FG and a punt, the latter being returned for a TD. And that was the play where suddenly, the game was tied and the 49ers were very, very much in it. I can’t even remember the last time the 49ers blocked either a punt or a FG. To do both in a playoff game? In Lambeau Field? That’s crazy stuff.

  KNBR @KNBR

  "They blocked the punt!!!" Here's the radio call of the punt block heard 'round the world 📻

• The terrifying Packers offense disappeared. Aaron Rodgers, aka Throw Rogan, Karen Rodgers, QAaron Rodgers and other clever nicknames, led a dominant first drive downfield to a TD. He had a 75-yard pass that set up the blocked field goal. (Thanks, Jimmie Ward!) Aside from that, he had 98 yards passing the rest of the game. And in the second half, the entire Packers offense had 58 yards. After the 49ers tied the game up, any offense that got a few first downs would have won the game for Green Bay, and they couldn’t do it. Bad play calling by the offense? Great play calling by the defense? A QB who wanted the big play and ignored wide open receivers underneath? Yep, all of the above.

  Robby Kalland @RKalland

  aaron rodgers should've done more of his own research on the 49ers defense

• The 49ers own the Packers in the postseason. Having been a long time fan of the team, it’s really amazing to think of how many seasons ended - mostly in the 1990s - to the Packers and the Cowboys. And they’ve gone on the road and beaten both of them. And Aaron Rodgers is 0-4 in the playoffs against the team he vowed would regret not drafting him. (And I’m sure they do regret it, but thanks for the four wins, buddy.)

  Keith Olbermann @KeithOlbermann

  Once again we all mistakenly believed Aaron Rodgers had a shot

SB Nation @SBNation

The only thing Aaron Rodgers hates more than science is playing against the 49ers.

The 49ers will now attempt to beat the Rams for the third time this season in order to get to the Super Bowl. I’m nervous, and the odds are gonna be against them, but there seems to be no obstacle this team shirks from. They’re gonna be dangerous.