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In-game analysis Packers, Favre get best of 49ers in San Francisco
Posted: Tuesday November 30, 1999 01:05 AM
The Football Fiend is live in San Francisco filing reports to keep you up with the action between the Packers and 49ers. Game over It's painful to see the decline of the 49ers. This team is a shell of its former self. San Francisco now has scored 16 points in its last four games -- combined. Steve Stenstrom was ineffective again for the Niners. And the San Francisco defense couldn't stop Brett Favre and the Packers when it counted. Green Bay, on the other hand, had its offense clicking again. Favre has completed 67 percent of his passes in the last two games. But more importantly, he hasn't thrown an interception since the loss to Dallas two weeks ago.
9:27 remaining 4th quarter The wind and rain hurt the hometown team in the fourth quarter, as a punt of only 19 yards gave Green Bay excellent field position which led to Ryan Longwell's short field goal. Chad Stanley was kicking out of the South end of the stadium, with a decent breeze blowing in his face when he shanked a punt that traveled about 25 yards before bouncing back toward the line of scrimmage and being downed by the 49ers. The poor punt and ensuing scoring drive by San Francisco came at a key point in the game, and gave Green Bay an easy chance to march down the field to take a commanding lead. The weather again played a role in Fred Beasley's fumble on fourth-and-1 that killed the 49ers latest drive. Beasley had the ball slip out of his hands immediately after taking the snap from Steve Stenstrom, and Darren Sharper recovered for Green Bay. The rain has picked up in the second half, and many fans are already leaving 3Com Park with the outcome of the game apparent. 3:42 remaining 3rd quarter The play calling from Packers offensive coordinator Sherman Lewis has San Francisco guessing. Lewis ran the gamut of the West Coast-offense playbook on the drive, calling screen passes and draw plays for Dorsey Levens, and then stretching the defense deep along the sidelines to both Antonio Freeman and Corey Bradford. The touchdown pass to tight end Tyrone Davis was an excellent read from Favre, who saw that the Niners were bunched up in the middle of the field, with strong safety Tim McDonald trying to get the officials' attention to call a timeout. Favre recognized their confusion and got the ball quickly to Davis in the left slot, and with no defender immediately over Davis it was an easy 10 yards to the end zone to put Green Bay up by 14 points.
At the half Green Bay got substantial pressure on Steve Stenstrom late in the first half, batting down several passes and sacking him on a few other occasions. San Francisco needs to protect the quarterback better up front to have a chance to get back in the game. Green Bay would like to come out and establish the running game, to run some block and keep the ball out of the 49ers' hands. The intermittent rain at 3Com Park will help whatever team is able to establish control early in the second half, as the team who is playing catch up will have a tough time throwing the football successfully on a cold, rainy night
11:50 remaining, 2nd quarter Green Bay caught San Francisco in a poor formation down in the red zone on Corey Bradford's 13-yard touchdown catch. The 49ers played a soft, umbrella zone defense against Green Bay's four-receiver set, expecting Green Bay to run some sort of crossing pattern with the outside receivers on either side. When Green Bay sent Antonio Freeman in motion, seeing the 49ers' lack of reaction to the motion man showed Brett Favre immediately what his first read was going to be. Corey Bradford was the primary receiver on the pattern, running a crossing pattern about five yards deep off the line of scrimmage. Middle linebacker Ken Norton sat back about eight yards off the line of scrimmage waiting for someone to cross the middle, but Favre's pass hit Bradford perfectly in stride, and Bradford's speed left Norton standing in the middle of the field. Strong safety Tim McDonald was responsible for the hook-curl zone on the right side of the offensive formation, but he slipped down as Bradford caught the ball and raced across the middle. McDonald's slip allowed Bradford to easily turn the corner and hightail it toward the right pylon for the go-ahead touchdown. 14:55 remaining, 2nd quarter The 49ers mixed it up offensively on the Packers in the first quarter, clearly getting the better of the action, but failed to put points on the board. San Francisco got a big pass play from Steve Stenstrom to Jerry Rice late in the first quarter, which was actually the same play they ran to open the game. Rice was matched up in man-to-man coverage with Packers rookie cornerback Mike McKenzie on the far right side of the field. On the game's opening play, Rice beat McKenzie quickly off the line, but Stenstrom delivered the ball just out of the reach of Rice's fingertips. The second time the Niners tried the play, Rice took a quick outside release and beat McKenzie cleanly off the line of scrimmage. Stenstrom delivered the ball on the money this time, and San Francisco had a 32-yard gain. The Packers had made an adjustment after seeing the first play though, and free safety Darren Sharper was cheating over to Rice's side of the field. Sharper made the tackle, stopping what could've turned into a touchdown if Green Bay hadn't made the adjustment.
3:00 remaining, 1st quarter Expect a tough night for quarterbacks. The forecast is for rain to start in the Bay Area sometime during tonight's game. An early lead by either team could be tough to recover from if the weather turns nasty later in the game, making missed opportunities by the Niners tough to live with. Steve Stenstrom already has been victimized by the elements. Stenstrom tried to force a pass to J.J. Stokes in the right corner of the end zone. The pass - a questionable one, at that -- hung up in the wind and Packers strong safety LeRoy Butler easily picked it off in the end zone killing the drive. 9:32 remaining, 1st quarter False start penalties played in role in halting these drives. San Francisco had two false starts called on their opening drive, while the Packers committed one false start on their first possession. Packers left tackle Mike Wahle was guilty of the infraction on 3rd and 1 from their own 28-yard line, and the penalty backed them up five yards, forcing a more difficult 3rd and 6. Wahle had veteran defensive end Haley lined up over him, and flinched with Haley threatening a rush. Green Bay missed its third down conversion on the next play, forcing a punt after only three offensive plays.
He may be old, but Haley already is making his mark.
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