The Atlanta Falcons, who are just trying to finish out the season with some positives to build upon, went into Levi's Stadium and shocked the San Francisco 49ers this past weekend.
The Niners are playoff-bound, and no one really saw the upset coming. That's not to say anyone was overlooking the Falcons. It's just that few expected San Francisco to lose the game.
As for how Atlanta came away with the win, don't expect anyone to sit down with the film from that game and map out a "How to beat the San Francisco 49ers" blueprint. NFL Matchup analyst Greg Cosell joined KNBR on Wednesday to explain why the Falcons didn't throw anything at Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers that should cause fans to panic.
"It was one of those games, believe me," Cosell told Rod Brooks and Marcus Thompson. "Kyle Shanahan has seen all this stuff before."
The analyst goes on to explain that everyone is very quick to say there is now a blueprint to beating a good team when that team is upset as the 49ers were on Sunday.
"That's a bunch of garbage because nobody really does anything brand new," Cosell continued. "What happens in given games is certain things happen in that given game. For instance, in this game, the 49ers' O-line was handled. That was a factor in the game.
"Garoppolo never found his rhythm, and he's as pure a rhythm thrower as there is in the league. He did not look comfortable in this game. I don't think he was at his best when it comes to — the term that I used is 'elimination and isolation' — eliminating what was not there quickly and isolating what is there quickly."
Cosell believes there is no blueprint to be had from the game and that a lot of factors contributed to the offense's uninspiring play.
"There's no blueprint here," Cosell adds. "They didn't do anything that the Niners had not seen or will never see again."
You can listen to the entire conversation with Cosell below.
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