The San Francisco 49ers emerge from Week 12, boasting a 10-1 record, the best mark in the NFC. The team is always focused on the next opponent, but the dominant 37-8 victory over a tough Green Bay Packers team has fans thinking Super Bowl.
San Francisco's last trip to the Super Bowl was nearly seven years ago. That game ended in heartbreak, with the 49ers unable to win a sixth Lombardi Trophy for the Bay Area.
One player who remembers that game well is former NFL safety Donte Whitner, who was a part of that squad. Now, he is an analyst with NBC Sports Bay Area and asked Garoppolo during the post-game show what the team can do to make sure it returns and finishes the job.
"I really think it's a mindset," Garoppolo responded, "and everyone has it in the locker room, and it started early in training camp, and it's been throughout the whole season. We got a great group of guys, guys who are willing to fight. I mean, George (Kittle) playing through what he played through. All these guys, they're playing injured, it's just a mindset right now."
Garoppolo noted that the 49ers played complementary football with the offense, defense, and special teams all doing their part in the win. Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who will undoubtedly be a first-ballot Hall of Famer soon after his career is done, was held to just 41 yards passing in the first half.
"I mean, that's insane," Garoppolo said when told that statistic.
The seven-time Pro Bowl selection and two-time first-team All-Pro quarterback finished the game with just 104 yards — his lowest total of the season — and one touchdown while averaging only 3.2 yards per attempt. The Packers' eight points against the 49ers were their lowest point total of the year.
Meanwhile, Garoppolo finished completing 70 percent of his passes for 253 yards with two touchdowns and a career-high passer rating of 145.8.
It didn't hurt that Sunday's matchup was a home game for the 49ers.
"I felt the energy in the stadium tonight," Garoppolo said of the Levi's Stadium crowd. "These fans were rocking. It was packed. I mean, this whole stadium, it was incredible."
You can watch the entire post-game conversation with Garoppolo and Kittle below.
