49ers @ Packers
Final Score: GB 38 – SF 10
Writer: Chris Helle (@ChrisHelleQBL on Twitter)
Well, we knew the Niners would struggle without Brock Purdy… but this was a rough one all around for the former NFC champs. Green Bay dominated things on the ground as Josh Jacobs put up over 100 yards with three touchdowns on the day. San Francisco was getting dominated on the trenches and had 15 missed tackles by halftime. Things were just as ugly on the other side of the ball – often getting behind the sticks on the early downs between tackles for loss or penalties, as well as some streaky play from Brandon Allen. Christian McCaffrey struggled to produce due to their passing offense not posing much of a threat, with the exception of George Kittle. It was really a pedestrian day for Jordan Love as the Packers’ offense made many chunk plays on the ground, but a late touchdown to Malik Heath salvaged a potentially bust game for fantasy purposes.
One Up
- Josh Jacobs – He’s got the third most rushing yards from scrimmage in the NFL, and now he’s getting the touchdowns to boot. Jacobs is a power back with great vision and seems to always get more out of every play when the ball’s in his hands.
Two Down
- Deebo Samuel – It’s been a rough stretch for Samuel and there doesn’t appear to be a light at the end of the tunnel. Two dropped passes on only four targets forced Kyle Shanahan into moving him to kick returner.
- Romeo Doubs – He was heavily involved but suffered an injury when he was targeted in the endzone. It looked to be concussion-related, but that is pure speculation and we’ll wait to see the injury reports when released.
San Francisco 49ers
Quarterback
Brandon Allen: 17/29 199 Yards, 1 TD, 1 INT | 2 Attempts, 5 Yards, 1 Fumble
Allen was given the nod that he’d be the starter late in the week as Purdy is nursing an injured shoulder. This was his first full game played since the final week of 2021 when he was Burrow’s backup on the Bengals, and it showed. He took a sack early in the game, nearly had an interception before one was actually picked off on a high-thrown ball at Deebo Samuel, and a few false starts from the linemen likely due to a new cadence. Shanahan made adjustments to take some of the complexity out of the offense and allow him to hit short, quick-release throws, but the lack of vertical threat made it easy for the Packers to play tight coverage and clog up the run. Allen is far from a fantasy asset himself, and he poses as a bit of a liability to the production of the rest of this offense.
Running Back
Christian McCaffrey: 11 Attempts, 31 Yards | 4 Targets, 3 Receptions, 37 Yards, 1 Fumble
Jordan Mason: 3 Attempts, 8 Yards | 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 5 Yards
Kyle Juszczyk: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 14 Yards
McCaffrey is clinging to volume and his reputation as a playmaker, but this game proved to be a major red flag. Some of his inefficiency can be attributed to good defense played by the Packers, but the offensive line didn’t create many opportunities for him and he wasn’t as elusive as he was last season. He may not have had a single missed tackle forced on any of his carries, but being involved in the passing game helps to get him in open space. Unfortunately, almost all his yards came on a swing route he took for 23 yards but he fumbled on the play. I wouldn’t be surprised to see more of Jordan Mason going forward. He took his first carry 16 yards, but some garbage time carries took away from his total. Let’s not forget he had the fifth most rushing yards through the first six weeks of the season, and McCaffrey’s inefficiency since his return to action doesn’t bode well for his bell-cow usage.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
George Kittle: 6 Targets, 6 Receptions, 82 Yards, 1 TD
Jauan Jennings: 7 Targets, 5 Receptions, 40 Yards
Deebo Samuel: 4 Targets, 1 Reception, 21 Yards
Chris Conley: 1 Target, 0 Receptions
Eric Saubert: 1 Target, 0 Receptions
The lone bright spot in this offense today was Kittle. He was all over the place, catching short routes and deeper passes up the seams, and sat nicely in the window of a zone to bring in his touchdown. Even with some slightly inaccurate passes, he was able to make impressive adjustments to bring them in. Jauan Jennings saw the most targets, but his routes all being deeper down the field is both a blessing and a curse given the quarterback situation. His only incompletions came on a poorly thrown ball and a throwaway while Allen evaded pressure. For those with shares of Samuel, I have no good news for you. One of his missed targets was a ball thrown well behind him, but the other two went straight through his hands – one of which was intercepted. Shanahan attempted to get him more involved by placing him back as the kick returner. He did have an 87-yard return that was called back by a penalty, but it’s not a good sign when the coach has to revert to special teams to get their receiver involved.
Green Bay Packers
Quarterback
Jordan Love: 13/23 163 Yards, 2 TDs | 1 Attempt, 2 Yards
Not much was asked of Love in this one with the way the Packers were running the ball. He was a little streaky when airing it out though. Love can easily manage the short throws and put plenty of air under it when throwing it deep, but the intermediate-depth throws can be shaky at times. He overthrew Doubs on what could have been a 25-yard touchdown, threw an interception that didn’t count on a free play where he drew the defense offsides, and had another ball thrown behind Doubs on a slant that was nearly picked. His touchdowns came on a tight-end screen to Tucker Kraft caught at the line of scrimmage, and then a garbage time lob to Malik Heath.
Running Back
Josh Jacobs: 26 Attempts, 106 Yards, 3 TDs | 1 Target, 0 Receptions
Emanuel Wilson: 9 Attempts, 41 Yards
Chris Brooks: 4 Attempts, 11 Yards | 1 Target, 1 Reception, 15 Yards
Don’t let the snap counts or rush share fool you – this game was all Jacobs. He broke off an 18-yard carry on his first touch of the day and never slowed down. His strength was on full display breaking tackles on nearly every carry and marched three into the paydirt. He did sub out on most, if not all, third downs – but it was hard to tell whether that was intentional or just to give him rest from all the carries he was getting. Jacobs also missed a number of plays due to cramping, but came back into the game for his third score. Emanuel Wilson was the next man up as Jacobs needed breaks, and Chris Brooks only saw the field when the game was well in hand.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Romeo Doubs: 6 Targets, 3 Receptions, 54 Yards
Tucker Kraft: 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 26 Yards, 1 TD
Jayden Reed: 3 Targets, 3 Receptions, 26 Yards
Christian Watson: 3 Targets, 0 Receptions | 1 Attempt, 4 Yards
Malik Heath: 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 15 Yards, 1 TD
John Fitzpatrick: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 2 Yards
Bo Melton: 1 Target, 0 Receptions | 1 Attempt, 5 Yards
Well, it was another game with Jayden Reed getting featured early on and then slipping into the woodwork. All three of his receptions came on the first drive, and then he was essentially a punt returner for the remainder of the game. Doubs was the primary receiver getting targeted throughout the game, but as previously mentioned, the Packers weren’t pressured to throw the ball very much. Doubs did break away from the corner on a fade down the sideline that could have been a touchdown had Love not overthrown him. Another target on an endzone fade resulted in a scary fall that sent Doubs to the locker room for the rest of the game. The touchdown on that drive went to Tucker Kraft on a screen pass he tumbled all the way home. Kraft wasn’t really looked at until they got in the redzone, and he nearly took his other reception to the house but was tackled on the two-yard line. Christian Watson had three deep balls thrown his way, one of which hit him square in the hands he has no excuse for dropping – would have been a 49-yard touchdown.