Packers vs. 49ers Live Stream: Watch Online, TV Channel, Start Time
The San Francisco 49ers advanced to Super Bowl LIV with a 37-20 victory over the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship game.
The 49ers seized a 10-0 lead early in the second quarter as running back Raheem Mostert sprinted into the end zone from 36 yards out. San Francisco kicker Robbie Gould added a 54-yard field goal as the 49ers gained a two-possession advantage.
The San Francisco 49ers were ahead 23-0 at halftime when they met the Green Bay Packers in Week 12 of the regular season. But on Sunday, they performed even better throughout the first 30 minutes of the 2020 NFC Championship.
The 49ers offense dominated the Packers during the game's opening two quarters, rushing for 185 yards and three touchdowns. Mostert slashed the GB defense for 160 of those yards and all three scores, running for 11.4 yards per carry. San Francisco led 27-0 at halftime.
The Packers went on to out-score the 49ers 20-10 in the second half, but a late interception off Rodgers sealed the deal for San Francisco.
How to Watch:
When: Sunday, Jan. 19
Time: 6:40 p.m. ET
TV: FOX
Live Stream: fuboTV (try for free)
Coach Matt LaFleur, 40, enjoyed a meteoric rise to a head coaching position after serving as offensive coordinator for the Rams in 2017 and Titans in 2018. He has made the Packers' offense greater than the sum of its parts, while building it around his star quarterback Aaron Rodgers. LaFleur is trying to become only the sixth coach to reach the Super Bowl in his first season.
The 36-year-old Rodgers was effective in last Sunday's 28–23 divisional round victory over Seattle, throwing for 243 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while also keeping Green Bay committed to the ground game. Aaron Jones, the team's first 1,000-yard rusher since 2014, was held to 62 yards, but did get 21 carries and scored the Packers' additional two touchdowns.
Green Bay was 9-for-14 on third downs, with Rodgers completing a pair of third down passes over the final 2:32 to run out the clock. The Packers advanced to their first NFC title game since losing 44–21 to Atlanta in 2017. For Rodgers, this will be his fourth conference championship game, with his lone win coming in 2011 in Chicago.
The California native also has yet to enjoy success against the 49ers in the playoffs, losing in both the divisional round in 2013 in the Bay Area and at Lambeau Field the following postseason in the wild card round.
Green Bay's defense did enough to contain Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, recording five sacks while making Seattle's offense one-dimensional by stifling running back Marshawn Lynch. Edge rushers Preston Smith and Za'Darius Smith each recorded two sacks, with Preston Smith recording a critical sack of Wilson on a 4th-and-6 in the fourth quarter to help seal the victory.
However, shutting down San Francisco's running game will be far more challenging. The Niners ranked second in the NFL in rushing at 144.1 yards per game and showed their depth and power in manhandling the Vikings in the divisional round. 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan had three backs at his disposal, riding Tevin Coleman to a 105-yard, two-touchdown effort as San Francisco finished with 186 yards on the ground and had possession for nearly 39 minutes.
San Francisco's defense was equally dominant and punishing, limiting Minnesota to seven first downs and not conceding any via the run. Rookie Nick Bosa recorded two of the team's six sacks and veteran cornerback Richard Sherman contributed a crucial third-quarter interception the offense turned into a soul-crushing touchdown and 17-point lead.
San Francisco is hosting the NFC Conference Championship after defeating Green Bay 37–8 at home in Week 12. Fred Warner had a strip-sack of Rodgers on the opening possession of the game, which turned into a 49ers touchdown by Coleman on the next play to set the tone, and Green Bay never recovered.
Jimmy Garoppolo added a second-quarter touchdown pass, as the 49ers led 23-0 at halftime and put the game out of reach when Garoppolo and George Kittle hooked up on a 61-yard scoring toss late in the third quarter after the Packers scored their lone touchdown.
Sunday is the eighth postseason meeting between the Niners and Packers. Green Bay holds a slim 4–3 edge, but San Francisco has won three of the last four matchups.
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