Despite acknowledging some uncertainty regarding the team's secondary, Steve Young believes the San Francisco 49ers are unlikely to lose to an NFC team in the playoffs. This includes the Green Bay Packers, who will enter Levi's Stadium on Saturday seeking to upset a postseason opponent for the second consecutive week.
The seventh-seeded Packers are likely feeling confident after defeating the second-seeded Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. Young emphasizes the need for the 49ers to be cautious and prevent the young Green Bay squad from gaining any momentum in the Divisional Playoff showdown.
The 49ers have been fast starters in several games this season, scoring first in their past three games and four of their last five contests.
"There's some holes they've been in, but I think they figure over four quarters, we'll get enough possessions, and we'll get this right," Young shared Wednesday on Bay Area radio station KNBR's "Tolbert and Copes" show. "So I don't think a 10-0 start [by the Packers] would be a panic. But in a playoff game, as you know, you've got to be super careful because things slide, and then it's over. Like, in other words, you know it's win or you're out. And so, in that way, you've got to answer quickly. You can't wait around. You can't let it be."
Not only are the Packers coming off a short week, but they will face a well-rested 49ers team that last played on January 7. Even in that game, most of the key starters played limited snaps or not at all, providing a significant advantage for the home-team Niners.
Young believes that even the Packers might be a bit surprised by their Wild Card success, not only beating the Cowboys but embarrassing them on their home turf. A fast start against the 49ers on Saturday could spell trouble.
Young continued, "And then they become, in a way, a little bit more dangerous because they're like, 'Oh, yeah, this is how we roll now. This isn't just for one game or the last month. This is kind of who we are.' And I think that's why, anything, in a big game like that, is to quiet them down, keep them under pressure, don't let them kind of do the fun, cool stuff they were doing, getting away with it.
"But if they get going on it, triple beware to make sure that you squash it quickly and get back on top."
Young doesn't believe it will come to that, though. He is confident the 49ers will be too much for the Packers to overcome.
"It should be a buzzsaw," Young declared. "There's no one in the NFC—who beat them this year? The AFC beat them, and then bully defenses like the Ravens. It's a different scene over there. We get that. We'll see them in Vegas, right? We'll deal with that when we deal with that.
"In the NFC today, at home, look, you've got to go do it. You've got to take care of business. You've got to do all the things right. This should be a buzzsaw, and I think they should say it in the locker room. It should be, and they've got to go take care of business. Let's be honest about it. And short of doing something that creates an opportunity for them, we shouldn't allow it."
You can listen to the entire conversation with Young below.