Packers Beat 49ers: Snaps, Stud, Dud, Defining Play

The Green Bay Packers started fast and eventually finished off the San Francisco 49ers. Here’s a look at the snap counts and additional analysis.

Green Bay Packers safety Xavier McKinney (29) celebrates his interception vs. the 49ers with Carrington Valentine. / Dan Powers/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers steamrolled the San Francisco 49ers 38-10 on Sunday, their most-lopsided victory in series history and the 49ers’ worst defeat in more than six years.

Let’s dive into the snap counts and additional analysis.

Packers Snap Counts

The Packers played 72 snaps on offense, with Malik Willis replacing Jordan Love for the final four snaps.

Running backs: Josh Jacobs was a workhorse. He played 38 snaps and carried the ball 26 times. He became the first player to rush for 100-plus yards against the 49ers since Justin Fields in 2021, a streak of 54 games. Chris Brooks played 25 snaps and Emanuel Wilson played 15. Wilson carried nine times for 41 yards.

Receivers: Christian Watson led the way with 47 snaps. Even with zero catches, it was an eventful game; he dropped a touchdown pass and prevented an interception. Romeo Doubs played 37 snaps before his concussion. Jayden Reed played 36, Dontayvion Wicks 28, Bo Melton 23 and Malik Heath 15.

Tight ends: Tucker Kraft played 57 snaps. His 79.2 percent playing time broke a seven-game streak of at least 82 percent. Ben Sims played 24, his third game with at least that many snaps. John Fitzpatrick played 14 snaps; he had played 10 snaps this season.

Offensive line: With the game decided, Kadeem Telfort, Andre Dillard and Travis Glover played the final four snaps. Telfort also was on the field as an extra lineman on Jacobs’ second touchdown run. It was the NFL debut for Glover, a sixth-round pick this year, and the Packers debut for Dillard.

Defense

Green Bay’s defense played 49 snaps, with defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley pulling his key players for the Niners’ final six-play series.

Defensive line: Defensive end Rashan Gary led the way with a meager 26 snaps, so this group should be as fresh as possible for Thursday. The nine main players ranged from Gary’s 26 to Devonte Wyatt’s 17. Kenny Clark’s 23 snaps were his fewest this season by 11.

Defensive end Brenton Cox played 22 snaps, which is more than Kingsley Enagbare (19) and Lukas Van Ness (18). Gary, Cox and Van Ness had forced fumbles.

Back after missing time with a shoulder injury, Colby Wooden played 22 snaps. Usually a defensive tackle, he started the game at end – showing the versatility he flashed during training camp.

Linebackers: Without Edgerrin Cooper, the Packers leaned on Quay Walker (43) and Isaiah McDuffie (41). Eric Wilson played 26 and rookie Ty’Ron Hopper (seven) got his first snaps on defense. After a rough outing at Chicago, Walker had perhaps his best game of the season.

Cornerbacks: Without Jaire Alexander, Keisean Nixon played all but the final six snaps. Going every-other series as the corner opposite Nixon, Carrington Valentine played 30 and Eric Stokes played 26.

Safeties: Xavier McKinney played the first 683 defensive snaps this season before sitting out the final series. Rookie Javon Bullard played 41 and fellow rookie Evan Williams played 36.

Stud: Josh Jacobs

Aaron Jones is doing his thing with the Vikings, but Josh Jacobs has changed the offensive dynamic in Green Bay.

Coach Matt LaFleur never seemed truly comfortable feeding Jones again and again, but there are no such qualms with Jacobs. He carried 26 times for 106 yards and three touchdowns. According to NextGen Stats, he broke 15 tackles – the most by any running back this season. We had Jacobs for 14 missed tackles and 81 yards after contact.

After his second touchdown, Jacobs went into the locker room because of cramping.

“I told the offensive line before the touchdown, I said my leg was literally locked up,” Jacobs said. “So, I was like, we’ve only got one chance for me to score right here because I’m going to the locker room.”

He missed one series, then returned to surpass 100 yards and score his third touchdown.

The only fear is that Jacobs, who was nursing a couple injuries last week, won’t have enough in the tank to attack the Dolphins on Thursday. The Packers let the shorthanded 49ers hang around too long.

“If I need to [carry the load again], I’m going to figure it out,” he said.

Dud: Christian Watson

After a breakout game against the Bears, Christian Watson was our “stud.” Against the 49ers, Watson is our “dud.”

Watson led the receivers in snaps but didn’t have any catches. He dropped what should have been a 49-yard touchdown before halftime, which would have given the Packers a 24-7 lead and allowed coach Matt LaFleur to perhaps pull his starters a little earlier.

It was his first drop of the year, according to Pro Football Focus.

“I just dropped it,” Watson said.

While he robbed Love of a touchdown pass, he also saved Love from an interception. Watson also had a good block on Emanuel Wilson’s 19-yard run that highlighted the second series.

With Romeo Doubs presumably out for Thursday’s game with a concussion, Watson will need a bounce-back performance.

Defining Play: Interception by Xavier McKinney

The game was uncomfortably close in the third quarter, with the 49ers trailing only 17-7 and facing a third down from Green Bay’s 48.

Backup quarterback Brandon Allen’s pass was high and a bit behind Deebo Samuel. Against tight coverage by Isaiah McDuffie, the ball went through Samuel’s hands and right to Xavier McKinney, who showed incredible reflexes and hands to snare his seventh interception of the season.

McKinney’s 48-yard return set up Jacobs for the second of his three touchdowns to make it 24-7.

You’ve got to appreciate his analysis.

“They were dropping a lot of passes, so I played for the tip,” McKinney said. “I saw what was in front of me, but I figured that that one probably was going to get straight through the hands, because it seemed like to be a thing pretty much the whole game.

“So, I just played for the tip and luckily it bounced right to me, and I was in the right spot and I was able to make the play.”

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The #Packers crushed the 49ers yesterday. Here is the weekly report card by Professor @JacobWestendorf. ⬇️https://t.co/5OcJ9zy8yk

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) November 25, 2024

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