Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
A lot is being said of the Green Bay Packers' last trip to Levi's Stadium as the San Francisco 49ers prepare to host them again — this time in the NFC Championship. Kyle Shanahan's squad embarrassed the Packers 37-8 in that last meeting.
Needless to say, Packers head coach Matt LaFleur is looking for things to be different this time around, and he may enlist some help from a friend, according to Mike Silver of
NFL Network.
Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay knows what it is like to face the 49ers twice a season. His team, like the Packers, was embarrassed during the first meeting with Shanahan, Jimmy Garoppolo, Nick Bosa, and company. During the second meeting, however, McVay's squad was able to put up more of a fight, losing by a field goal but finding ways to better move the football on offense.
McVay was able to have more success with his quarterback, Jared Goff, during the second meeting. Goff passed for 74 yards against San Francisco in Week 6, and then 323 yards during Week 16. Like Goff, Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers had his worst game of the season against the 49ers, passing for 104 yards during Week 12. He's hoping for a Goff-like rebound, as well.
"So I would imagine that not only will Matt LaFleur look to make similar adjustments with Aaron Rodgers,"
Silver explained on NFL Network, "but then he and Sean McVay may have a couple of conversations this week, and discuss this on a much higher level than I could understand."
Of course, McVay is also friends with Shanahan, so with the Rams' season over, who knows which friend the coach might side with.
Added Silver: "I would expect to see quicker releases, and some movement getting Aaron Rodgers off the spot where if he stays, like he did the first time, he just stands back there, Nick Bosa and friends could make it another pretty brutal outing."
Another Packer seeking some friendly help to find a way to beat the 49ers is Rodgers, who joined Brett Favre's SiriusXM NFL Radio show on Tuesday, according to
a report from Bay Area News Group.
What advice did Favre offer the quarterback who replaced him in Green Bay? A fast start might help.
"The first drive, Davante Adams got a questionable call against him, a personal foul," Favre said. "I feel that really changed the game."
Rodgers responded: "We have to start fast. That's the key. That play was important. That was a (10)-yard gain. We were outside the 40 now. Then we get a 15-yarder (penalty) and (we're) back inside the 30. Then I fumble and it's (13) minutes on the clock and it's 7-0 we're down."
NFL Network's Mike Silver today provided an update on the contract negotiations between the San Francisco 49ers and thier All-Pro tight end, George Kittle. Head coach Kyle Shanahan noted last week that general manager John Lynch has been working diligently to get a long-term deal done.
Kittle is entering the final year of his rookie contract.
"I know right now, as we speak, every day, I know John's upstairs working his butt off talking to Kittle's agent, and those two are trying to work it out," Shanahan said.
It doesn't sound like too much progress has been made, according to Silver.
"I talked to Kittle's agent, Jack Bechta, yesterday,"
The 2020 NFL season will be different. Very different. The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the league will become even more evident when teams finally step onto football fields across the country. Players already feel the difference with training camps being conducted very cautiously.
You've probably seen it already. Major League Baseball is playing sans fans in the stadium seats. The NBA looks...well...odd.
Sports leagues are adapting to the circumstances, and the NFL is trying to navigate its way toward a 2020 season. That, as is the case with other leagues, will likely mean an absence of fans, taking away that aspect of home-field advantage. At least the home teams won't have to
Imagine this, the San Francisco 49ers have won Super Bowl 54. Jimmy Garopppolo is the new NFL golden boy, Andy Reid is still notoriously snake bitten by the football gods and the 49ers are tied with the Patriots and Steelers for most Super Bowl wins ever.
This easily could have been the case if a a few things broke the 49ers' way in Super Bowl 54. In 2020, the 49ers have carried over the vast majority of their roster from 2019. Only 3 starters from that Super Bowl team are not present on the roster in 2020: LT Joe Staley, DT DeForest Buckner and WR Emmanuel Sanders. The big names to replace those 3 players have been well-touted. Veteran star LT Trent Williams will fill the gap left by Staley while 2 first-round draft picks, DT Javon Kinlaw and WR Brandon Aiyuk, will be tasked
