San Francisco 49ers players have a 24-hour rule. No matter what happens on game day, you have 24 hours to either celebrate or mourn. Then it's on to the next opponent. The Niners may have added a few more hours to that timeline after the heartbreaking defeat against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday night.

"This one stung a little extra," linebacker Fred Warner told reporters on Wednesday. "Any time you lose on a walk-off field goal, it stings."


Another stung player was offensive tackle Trent Williams, who also admitted that this defeat took a little longer to get over. But the good news is that he and his teammates are over it and are focused on turning things around this weekend against the visiting Seattle Seahawks.

The 49ers dropped to 2-1 with the loss to the Packers. It's not the worst position in which to be. However, dropping to 2-2 and losing your second consecutive game might make analysts wonder if things are spiraling out of control for the playoff-hopeful Bay Area squad.

"We know we've got our job cut out for us," Williams said of the upcoming NFC West battle with the Seahawks. "Aaron Rodgers is great, but Russell Wilson is great as well. If you give him a chance to string together a game-winning drive, he does that pretty good too.

"We've got to just learn from our mistakes. We've got to come out and try to possess the ball and be better on third down so we can continue to run the rock. And that's our brand of football. When we play that brand of football, we can win a lot of games."

The 49ers haven't had a running back rush for over 42 yards in the last two games. Rookie Elijah Mitchell, who rushed for 104 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries in Week 1, could return to the field this week. He exited Week 2's win over the Philadelphia Eagles with a shoulder injury.


A successful rushing attack is a vital part of the 49ers offense, and the team needs to find a way to get back on track in that area.

"It's football, and we've got to be realistic," Williams said. "When the 49ers hop off the bus, [opponents] know we want to run the ball. So, early in first quarter, second quarter ... those plays that you guys see and we make work every Sunday, that [opposing] team has been working on those plays for four or five days straight. So, in the first quarter, you're going to get everything they have and everything they've talked about all week to stop those certain amount of plays.

"Running the ball, it's a game of attrition, and it's the thing you've got to continue to run, continue to pound that rock, and eventually, it will break. I just think versus Philly, their front seven is a nightmare to run the ball on, and it's been like that for a long time. And finally, we start to hit our runs, and you start to realize what adjustments they're making to this play. It takes a few times to run that play to see that.

"So I think it's a blend. And we've got new running backs. I never would want to make an excuse, but it's natural. You can't expect to get off the bus and just rush for 100 yards every quarter like people have done in the past here. It switches up. And those guys, they get paid too."

Williams noted the 49ers are constantly working to correct shortcomings. It doesn't matter if that's an issue with an individual player or a unit as a whole.


Added Williams: "It's all a pot of gumbo, man. I can't really just pick one particular reason [for the issues]. But that's why you've got to continue to stay encouraged and continue to have faith in what [head coach] Kyle [Shanahan] is doing, and it all ends up working out."

You can listen to the entire conversation with Williams below.



Follow us on: X, Facebook, Threads, Instagram

Read Original Article
Visit 49ers Webzone

More San Francisco 49ers News