"Scary" Barry Rodriguez Productions (BRP): 49ERS ICE PACKERS 23-20

Vs.

By Scary Barry Rodriguez January 5, 2013

Lambeau Field , Green Bay , WI - The San Francisco 49ers braved subzero temperatures and a crew of game officials who refused to call holding and pass interference calls against the Green Bay Packers irregardless of the many obvious instances when it would have been justified. Despite what all the media talking heads opined all week long , the weather was not the big factor in the game.

Aaron Rodgers

Phil Dawson

Michael Crabtree

In the first quarter the Niner defense put the boots to Aaron Rodgers and the Packer offense. They just pushed their offensive line around. On offense the 49ers from the very start continued to be dogged by communication problems. They used two timeouts in a very short span of time. When the offense did get rolling , with Michael Crabtree making multiple grabs , their red zone woes again surfaced. Phil Dawson hit two field goals , one from 22 yards out and another from 25 yards out. The Niners totally dominated yet had only six points in the first quarter !

Colin Kaepernick

Vernon Davis


Jordy Nelson

Early in the second quarter the Niners mounted another drive , going deep into Green Bay territory. Then Kaepernick lofted a pass intended for Vernon Davis at the 13 yard line and was intercepted. This lit the spark for the Packers. Aaron Rodgers then directed a drive that culminated in a 5 yard passing touchdown to Jordy Nelson. Forty Niner fans have been waiting for the appearance of the real Colin Kaepernick and then it materialized. During the Niners next offensive series the Packers defense used the blitz against him. In what was not a designed play , Kaepernick burst out of the pocket down the middle of the field for a 42 yard gain. Shortly after this Frank Gore powered his way into the end zone from ten yards out for a touchdown. This put the score at 13-7 in favor of San Francisco.

Frank Gore

Mason Crosby

The Packers managed to score before the half ended on a Mason Crosby field goal putting the score at 13-10 in favor of the Niners. They had statistically dominated the game but led by only three points over a Packer team that had a 8-7-1 regular season record. The 49ers again failed to knock out a wounded opponent !

The third quarter was a wash for both teams. The 49ers received the second half kickoff and went nowhere. They again couldn't get their act together on the offense, quickly using up two timeouts. Here they were in the playoffs and making Pop Warner football mistakes ! The Niner defense kept shutting down the Packers , waiting for the offense to do their part .

John Kuhn

Eddie Lacy

In the fourth quarter, Rodgers hung tough in the pocket and completed a drive that had started late in the third quarter. This led to a John Kuhn 1 yard touchdown run that put Green Bay ahead in the game for the first time 17-13 ! San Francisco fans including myself wondered just how could the 49ers game after game just fold in the late goings. It turns out that this was the spark that Kaepernick needed to get going. The Niners drove down the field and scored a touchdown when Kaepernick rifled a 28 yard pass to a well covered Vernon Davis , to go ahead 20-17.

There was still plenty of time at this point in the quarter for Aaron Rodgers to mount another game winning comeback. The Packer's last drive used up some valuable game clock but only yielded a game tying 24 yard field goal off the boot of Mason Crosby. With the game tie at 20-20 the stage was set for the 49ers to hold on to the ball and go on a game winning drive. Kaepernick stepped up at this point and took control. Mixing short passes , with short grinding runs by Frank Gore , the Niners drove down the field eating up the game clock. The drive had started with over five minutes left on the game clock. Every first down became crucial. Kaepernick throughout the game had kept drives alive with his running and this was the case again. With his team not quite in field goal range and a 3rd down and 8 situation , Kaepernick escaped a designed blitz and ran outside for 11 yards and a big first down ! Then it was just a matter of getting the ball close as possible for Phil Dawson. The Packers watched helplessly as Dawson booted a game winning 33 yard field goal with just two seconds left on the game clock. San Francisco had survived the frozen tundra and the game officiating for a 23-20 victory !

Clearly the MVP for the game was Colin Kaepernick. At times he appears lost and confused yet his undeniable talent won out. He went 16/30 for 227 yards and one touchdown. It was his running that really broke the back of Green Bay's defense. He rushed 7 times for 98 yards. He suffered one interception. Michael Crabtree had 8 catches for 125 yards. His importance to the offense cannot be underestimated. Vernon Davis hauled in a 28 yard touchdown pass and Frank Gore pounded out 66 yards on 20 carries. The Niner defense allowed Eddie Lacy to bull his way for 81 yards on 21 carries but that wasn't enough , along with Aaron Rodgers , to win the game.