Calling Sunday's loss to the Seattle Seahawks disappointing is an understatement, especially for San Francisco 49ers legend Jerry Rice. Watching his former team blow a fourth-quarter lead for the third time this season was tough for the Hall of Famer, who remains one of the franchise's biggest supporters.
At 5-5, the 49ers' playoff hopes aren't dead, but the path forward has become much narrower. A team that has struggled with costly mistakes all season now needs a significant turnaround.
Rice knows change is necessary for the 49ers to salvage their season. With seven games remaining, the margin for error is razor-thin.
"We need everybody to man up now," Rice said Monday morning on Bay Area radio station 95.7 The Game. "Our backs are against the wall, and we can't lose any more ball games. We've gotta go. We've got to somehow find a way to get that momentum going where we start winning football games, we're building confidence, and then hopefully, towards the end, we have something left to try to get into the playoffs, and maybe get back to the Super Bowl."
While Rice is holding onto optimism about the 49ers' championship aspirations, he acknowledges the obvious: None of it matters if the team keeps losing. Their next opportunity to turn things around comes on Sunday at Lambeau Field against the Green Bay Packers—a daunting task.
"But everybody's got to rally around each other now, and whatever our identity is going to be, it has to start this week, and it has to start with the Packers," Rice continued. "With [QB] Jordan Love, and all of that, and that team, that's not going to be an easy win.
"But you just start marking each one off one by one, build up some momentum, and hopefully, that transitions into winning a lot of ball games and getting into the playoffs."
Despite entering the season with Super Bowl aspirations, the 49ers sit in last place in the NFC West. The good news? They are just one game behind the division-leading Arizona Cardinals, who hold a 6-4 record. The Cardinals won their first matchup on October 6, but the two teams will face off again in Week 18—a game that, at this point, the 49ers have to hope has playoff implications.
For now, though, the 49ers' sole focus must be on Green Bay.
"My main focus would just be basically just on the Packers," Rice said. "How are we going to attack the Packers? We've got to go into their stadium, and we have to get a win. This is a must-win for us."
You can listen to Rice's entire interview below.