49ers overcome 7-pt deficit in 4th quarter to beat Packers and advance to NFC Championship Game
Yahoo Sports’ Jason Fitz reacts to the San Francisco 49ers’ 4th quarter comeback against the Green Bay Packers to advance to the NFC Championship Game.
Video Transcript
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JASON FITZ: The San Francisco 49ers are headed to the NFC Championship game. But don't get it twisted. The Packers gave them everything they could handle in this one. Early on it was about mistakes San Francisco was making uncharacteristically.
We're talking about some pass interference penalties, defenders slipping on the field, a blocked field goal at the end of the first half. They also gave up a huge kick return in the second half that put Green Bay in scoring position. Everything felt out of whack for San Francisco.
And Green Bay entered the fourth quarter up by a touchdown. That's significant because coming into this game, the 49ers were 0 and 30 when trailing by five or more under Kyle Shanahan entering the fourth quarter. So it looked like all hope was lost, but the fourth quarter, just like much of this game, was wild. How uncharacteristic was all of it? Green Bay didn't even punt until the fourth quarter of this game. That sounds weird, right?
Aaron Jones continued his run dominance, which is also unusual. He ran for over 100 yards in this game, which should have been an indicator for a Green Bay win. Why? Well, he's done it in five straight games, which is a franchise record. And also, it breaks the streak of 51 straight games since the last time anybody ran for 100 yards against the San Francisco defense. It felt like everything was going the Packers way until it wasn't.
Anders Carlson misses field goal late in the game that gives the ball back to the 49ers late in the fourth, and they're only up at that point by 4, that's all the window the 49ers need as they drive down the field when Christian McCaffrey gets the go ahead touchdown with just over a minute remaining.
Look, two things can be true at once. We saw an awakening yet again for Jordan Love, who continues to play at a level that makes Packers fans feel that they've got their quarterback for the next generation. We saw Brock Purdy struggle even in a win. We saw all of these strange elements, but most importantly for the 49ers, the number one team in the NFC advances, and now they'll be at home for the NFC Championship game.