Thanks to three takeaways creating 21 points and three touchdown runs from Josh Jacobs, the Green Bay Packers cruised past the short-handed San Francisco 49ers on Sunday at Lambeau Field.
The 49ers were without Brock Purdy, Trent Williams and Nick Bosa, but the Packers did what any contender should do at home against an undermanned, reeling opponent: dominate. Green Bay held leads of 17-0 and 24-7 and finished off the 28-point win with 14 straight points in the fourth quarter.
Here are the stars, studs and duds from the Packers’ Week 12 win over the 49ers:
Stars
RB Josh Jacobs: He scored three 1-yard touchdowns, broke 15 tackle attempts (per Next Gen Stats) and turned 26 carries into 106 hard-earned rushing yards. Time and time again, Jacobs made the first (and sometimes the second and third) defender miss and picked up extra yards. He helped solve some of the red-zone woes with tough running near the goal line. On one of his second-half touchdowns, Jacobs carried a defender or two into the end zone after getting first hit at the 2-yard line. He turned several potential negative plays into positive plays. Jacobs created runs of 10 yards and 18 yards on the opening series, setting the tone early. He finished with seven runs of seven or more yards, including three of 10 or more. No. 8 was a man on a mission against the Niners.
S Xavier McKinney: The former Giant made two hugely impactful plays to end any chance of a 49ers run in the second half. He blanketed Christian McCaffrey and broke up a fourth down pass in Packers territory to start the third quarter, and his interception — and 58-yard return — on the ensuing San Francisco drive set up a quick touchdown.
Studs
LB Quay Walker: A terrific performance from the 2022 first-rounder. Walker finished a third-down stop in the backfield after Rashan Gary’s strip-sack, had a tackle for loss on Christian McCaffrey to set up a punt and produced a pressure resulting in a throwaway on third down. He played fast and decisively against a team with weapons at the skill positions. Six of his tackles would have been considered “stops” if not for a couple of accepted penalties on others. This likely would have been a “star” performance had he held on to a gimmie interception in the first half.
TE Tucker Kraft: He made key blocks over and over in the run game, and his two catches — an 11-yard touchdown off a tight end screen, and a 15-yarder down to the 1-yard line — were key plays for the Packers in the red zone.
K Brandon McManus: The veteran got a chance to kick a long field goal in the cold at Lambeau Field, and he connected on a 51-yarder. McManus also hit all five extra points. There is a quieting and comforting confidence in the kicker position right now.
RB Emanuel Wilson: His nine rushes gained 41 yards. Wilson converted a 3rd-and-1 on the opening drive and had gains of nine yards and 18 yards on a scoring drive in the first half.
WR Romeo Doubs: He had a drop that nearly resulted in a turnover, but Doubs also converted 3rd-and-11 (29-yard catch), 3rd-and-5 (10-yard catch) and 3rd-and-10 (15-yard catch) on a touchdown drive, and he drew a pass interference penalty in the end zone on third down to set up another score. He left with a concussion in the third quarter but caught three passes for 54 yards.
Duds
WR Christian Watson: His uncontested drop of a sure-fire 49-yard touchdown pass was one of the only duds of the game. It’s a play Watson has to make 100 out of 100 times. He did help break up a turnover-worthy throw from Jordan Love.