The San Francisco 49ers get going in just a few hours, kicking off against the Green Bay Packers at 1:25 p.m. PT. The 49ers are coming off back-to-back ugly losses to the Pittsburgh Steelers and Arizona Cardinals. Everything that could go wrong last week seemed to go wrong. Colin Kaepernick made some horrible decisions. The offensive line was brutal. The pass rush was inconsistent. The defensive front as a whole was not particularly good. The secondary got shredded. Good times all around!
The 49ers now welcome a Packers team that is 3-0, and playing some strong football. They do have some weaknesses, as discussed by David Neumann earlier this week. The Packers have some issues along the offensive line, and in their front seven when they get spread out. They are coming off a short week, and big home underdogs have a favorable history. Pick your argument, the 49ers do stand a chance in this one.
But the real question is what exactly do you expect out of this game? Beyond just winning or losing, do we see anything resembling a respectable showing from the offensive line or the pass rush? Does Colin Kaepernick avoid last week's mistakes, and maybe regain some of his past magic against the Packers? Or was last week a sign of things to come?
A small part of me keeps thinking this game could be respectable given the short week and the history of big home underdogs. A bigger part of me thinks this game could real ugly real quick. Aaron Rodgers has always played with a chip on his shoulders, but given the 49ers last four games against the Packers, I find myself wondering if he and the Packers will want to pour it on even more than they might otherwise do. I am just wondering how other folks are feeling heading into this afternoon's game.