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The San Francisco 49ers are in big trouble in the NFC playoff picture after they were demolished by the Green Bay Packers 38-10 at Lambeau Field. The 28-point margin of defeat is the worst for the 49ers in their long history against the Packers, and it now feels like Kyle Shanahan and company have a long road to reach the postseason.
The 49ers couldn't get anything going on offense with backup quarterback Brandon Allen under center while Brock Purdy was sidelined with a shoulder injury. Allen had his flaws on Sunday, but the 49ers were unable to help him out at all in the run game and on defense.
After the game, tight end George Kittle touched on what went wrong in one of the worst losses of the Shanahan era in San Francisco, according to Nick Wagoner of ESPN.
“Catch everything thrown to us, don't have penalties and don't turn the ball over,” Kittle said, per Wagoner. “And we didn't really do all those things, and it kind of just put [Allen] at a disadvantage.”
Allen finished the game 17-for-29 with 199 yards and one touchdown with one interception. On the ground, Christian McCaffrey managed just 31 yards on 11 rushes and was unable to pop any of the explosive runs that he's used to having throughout the game.
49ers front seven gets bludgeoned by Packers
The Packers put up 38 points on offense against the 49ers in a blowout win on Sunday, but they didn't do it with a bunch of explosive passes by Jordan Love. Sure, there were a few of those mixed in, but the Packers won this game up front and in the running game.
Josh Jacobs pounded the 49ers with consistent success all afternoon, finishing with 106 yards on 26 carries with three touchdowns on the ground. It wasn't a day full of big chunk gains for Jacobs, but the Packers consistently had success on the ground on early downs, putting Love and company in advantageous situations to keep moving the sticks.
The Packers finished with 22 first downs on Sunday — double the amount of the 49ers — and Jordan Love only had to throw 23 passes. We've seen Love carry the offense through the air before, especially late last season, but this was an ideal game script for the Packers given his volatile decision making this season (and in this game at times).
On the 49ers side, this felt like an accumulation of the amount of talent they had lost (and were missing) in the front seven. Nick Bosa didn't play in this game on the edge. Javon Hargrave is still out with an injury at defensive tackle. Linebacker Dre Greenlaw is still working to get back from the torn Achilles he suffered in last season's Super Bowl.
The 49ers still have Fred Warner in the middle, but you can feel the lack of impact players in the front seven outside of that compared to past years. That problem will get a little bit better when Bosa and Greenlaw are back on the field, but it is likely to be an issue in some capacity for the rest of the season.
![Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Arik Armstead (91) runs off the field before an NFL football matchup Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. The Jaguars held off the Titans 20-13. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]](https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Arik-Armstead-with-Jaguars.jpg)
