Everyone inside the San Francisco 49ers locker room was physically and emotionally exhausted after a closer-than-expected Divisional Playoff victory over the Green Bay Packers. The game saw six lead changes, and the top-seeded 49ers entered the fourth quarter trailing the seventh-seeded Packers at a rain-soaked Levi's Stadium. They appeared to be on the brink of playoff elimination.
The 49ers offense struggled to establish anything that resembled rhythm for much of the game. However, trailing 21-17 late in the contest, quarterback Brock Purdy orchestrated a thrilling 12-play, 69-yard drive, culminating in a six-yard touchdown run by Christian McCaffrey.
Purdy, who faced season-long criticism and labels such as "game manager" and "system quarterback," had led the 49ers to a comeback victory in the playoffs.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan acknowledged that the team has some areas to improve. Saturday night did not represent their best effort.
"It's not just one area," Shanahan said. "We just want to play our best football, do everything we can to play our best. We feel we can win every game when we do that. We don't feel like we did that today, but we still found a way to win, which [I'm] very proud of the guys in there.
"I thought that was as big of a mental challenge and just a character game as any game I've been a part of. I mean, when things aren't going how you want on offense, defense, special teams, the rain, guys slipping a lot, losing [WR] Deebo [Samuel] early, having to change some things with that, and just some of the mistakes we made [and had] to overcome. It was a gut check for everybody, and I couldn't be more proud of the people in there and just how they persevered."
Purdy highlighted the importance of earning a comeback win and fighting through the adversity of this type of game.
"Earlier this year, we had games like Cleveland and Minnesota and Cincinnati," Purdy shared. "At one point, you're down, and you got to find a way. It's the fourth quarter. It's the NFL. And then, obviously, we're in the postseason now. So we were all like, 'All right, this is it. This is our season.'
"And so for us to capitalize like that was huge for all of us. And then obviously for myself, as a quarterback, it's good for confidence and all that, but we have too many good players on this team, so many players that are difference-makers, and we've got a great defense. And so, for us to not find a way, it's not right. So for us to finally have a game like this and pull through at the end was huge for all of us."
Tight end George Kittle noted that the 49ers hadn't experienced many gritty wins this season. The team dominated so many opponents but lost the closer matchups.
"What a better time to learn how to win a gritty game than in the playoffs," Kittle said. "Just a little bit of stress here and there for everybody. But just incredibly proud of this team. We didn't play the way that we wanted to the entire game, but when the most critical moments happened, the defense stepped up when they had to, the offense stepped up when they had to, and made a kick when we had to.
"So just overall, could have been better, but eventually got the win."
Defensive end Nick Bosa stated, "We just haven't come from behind in a while. It's a really good team and really good coaching, and it just helps you get more battle-tested."
It may not have been pretty, but the 49ers are advancing to the NFC Championship Game for the third consecutive season. They will host the winner of Sunday's playoff game between the Detroit Lions and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Whatever it takes. #DoItForTheBay pic.twitter.com/oVxrHvL494
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) January 21, 2024
When asked about his post-game message to the team, Shanahan responded, "I just told them how proud I was of them. They knew the deal. I didn't have to say much. We knew that didn't go as clean as we wanted it to in all three phases. There wasn't one phase that was just like, 'Man, we made that easy.' All three of the phases felt like we were keeping both teams in the game, but felt we had to do it at the end.
"They gave us a couple of chances before that, and we didn't get it done. And we got it done there at the end, and the defense was back up, who had a couple of times that they had missed stuff, and they had to get it done on that last drive, and they got it done when it mattered the most."
The 49ers know they are better than what was on display against the Packers. Luckily, they earned a chance to prove that next weekend.
"At the end of the day, I'm so excited and proud that we got it done in all aspects," Purdy said. "The defense did their thing when it mattered most, the offense did at the end, special teams did a great job. So for us, it's like, 'Man, it's football. Weather is going to happen, and you got to find a way.' And we did.
"So that's the character of this team. That's what we stand for, and we all got each other's back. It's not always pretty, but, man, we got each other's back. We got some real love in this locker room, and everyone wants to play for each other."
