@YATittle posted:If memory serves me right early in the game on third and short Rodgers tried to force a pass to Jimmy Graham that didn't work when he had Jones open for the first. We needed some drives established early on....
The Packers offense played poorly, but converting that first down you reference wouldn't have mattered. The defense had no chance against the Niners. The Niners didn't do anything fancy in that playoff game. Their best offensive player, George Kittle, caught one pass for 19 yards. The Packers had no answer for him in the first game and yet the Niners just decided to hand the ball off 42 out of 50 plays.
In the playoff game, the Packers forced a punt on the Niners first drive and then allowed the Niners to score on their next 6 drives. Over the last 5 of those 6 drives, Garappolo completed 1 pass for 6 yards (on a third and 8). Unless the Packers scored on every one of those drives, they had no chance.
The Packers played 2 games against the Niners last year and were outscored 50-0 in the first half of the two games. They could have lined up 12 guys on defense and I don't think it would have mattered.