The closer we get to game time, the lower the tmperature will BE at game time, according to the prognosticators. As of now, the high is projected to be 7º, with a low of -20º as the night goes on. Which is why there are still over 6,000 tickets available for the game. Hmmm. Catch a flight to Green Bay? Maybe not. One would think this would be an advantage to the Packers, but to me this doesn’t really matter. Both sides play in the weather, and both teams are affected by it. Besides, our young QB played all his games in Reno, and the weather for the games he played in college was in places like Boise, Oregon, and Washington. Pretty much wintry conditions. And, he practiced outdoors in Reno, so the day-to-day aspect of his game was in weather.
In other words, the weather will play a factor, but I think it favors the Niners more than the Packers. The Niners have a stronger run game and can stop the run better than Green Bay, so we should be able to force GB into mistakes through the air by getting pressure on Aaron Rodgers. Of course forcing GB to pass might be considered playing to their strength, but letting them grind out the game wouldn’t be wise either. Stuff their run and take away the short passes. Clog up the underneath and take your chances on the deep passes in the crap weather.
Haven’t heard any more news on Carlos Rogers, but I’d think nursing a bad hammy in -10º weather wouldn’t seem to be a good idea. He’s likely not playing.
Forty Niners Forever 
Ice 26 Snow 10
Onto Carolina and heatstroke!
Dont like this unless its a decoy:
Practice report: CB Wright emerges with own hamstring issue while Rogers absent again
http://blogs.mercurynews.com/49ers/2014/01/02/practice-report-cb-wright-emerges-with-own-hamstring-issue-while-rogers-absent-again/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+49ersHotRead+%2849ers+Hot+Read%29
Yammer by Hammer: Trouble in Pass D?
http://www.49erswebzone.com/commentary/1233-49ers-pass-defense-trouble/
Yeah, the article re the jumbo package is disheartening to say the least. It did seem to get worse as the season wore on. Makes no sense to me why they seem to be sabotaging themselves.
Shaw running that 4th down dive play in Q4 Rose Bowl on the last series with virtually a Berlin Wall of green in front of him was not just stupid, it was idiotic, especially given the lack of run success for the “Furd in the second half. I wouldn’t want Shaw coaching my pro team, no friggin’ way…
But Harbaugh will love him
As regards the linked article by David Neumann; everybody’s got a gripe. His is not enough sneaks on short yardage I guess.
As I’ve mentioned, the three plays from last Sunday, 3-1, 4-1 and 3-1, were all different plays from similar formations and personnel. The one pictured at the bottom of the article looks like the 3rd and 1 play early in the 2nd quarter. No motion on that play, btw.
Added Kilgore and Snyder on the LOS and Tukuafu at FB. Typical power run to the strong side from the I formation. We run this play well, usually. Looking at the pre-snap shot in the article there is no way those four down lineman are going to stop this play. Right? But they pushed us completely off the LOS by playing with better leverage and more energy and stuffed the play. That’s not a bad play call, it’s terrible execution.
This play followed a 2nd and two that Gore only advanced the ball a single yard and lucky to get that. Slacking off like that isn’t going to win many playoff games. Just because we’re good at it doesn’t mean it’s automatic. Players still have to execute the play and win their individual battles.
The 4th and one motioned Kilgore to the weak side and sent the FB Dixon behind Iupati. No push, no gain.
The last 3rd and one sent Kilgore to block the end man on the weak side and he got pushed back into the play and the ball carrier, Dixon, was stuffed going around the weak side end, by sloppy execution again.
So Roman gets roasted because all these run blockers fail to block. If Roman calls a play that gets Boldin all alone in the end zone and he drops a good pass, is that a bad play call, too?
A lot of plays come off these runs and run formations. The TD at the end of the first quarter, for example, where VD leaked out unnoticed, and the back-to-back end around big gainers in the first quarter had a similar look to the them, not to mention selling the play actions. But we do seem to have a disturbing tendency to play down to our perception of the competition too often.
Well, the gist of the article remains. Their 3rd down conversion rate is suffering. To me it appears to be because our tendency is to run up the middle in the jumbo package. Not every time, but enough to be stopped pretty consistently. Poorly executed? You can say that about every failed play, NoFear. No one tries to throw a pick or lose yards. When the defense knows what’s coming, they can defend it easily. Like they showed last week, and the week before, etc.
Very similar to Singletary saying ‘stop Gore’ to the other team before every game.
NF, are you saying that the dismal short yardage gains, as evidenced by the percentages in the article, are caused simply by poor execution and that the jumbo play design and running it almost every short yardage situation is otherwise good?
It might make sense to blame the execution on some plays but it seems to me to be more a function of play design. There is only one possible answer to a jumbo formation and that is to stack the box. Limits the possibilities if after showing Jumbo you then go ahead and run that play almost every time.
The justification for many failures to convert 3rd down can’t be that it resulted in 1 touchdown on play action. Drives are stalled, D is back on the field and the O either didn’t score or maybe got a FG. Those outcomes are all less than ideal.
There is a place for jumbo, but the Niners are not fooling anybody when they line it up because they run it just as they are showing it. I counted 10 D players in the box in one of those screen shots and they still ran the play.
There’s a difference between personnel package, formation and play called. Everybody wants to call them all ‘the jumbo play’ and disregard the fact that we actually run different plays from that formation, gain benefits beyond the yards gained and that our o-line of first rounders / pro-bowlers gets pushed off the ball like college third teamers why do I give a damn?
BLEEP GREEN BAY. Some of their lousy seats are slow in selling. This game is a disservice to the Niners with a better record. I hope they pound the cheeseheads into submission. BLEEP!
I’m gonna say 26-24 Niners.
Hmmm…I am going to go against the grain here and say 20-13, go Niners
Yeah, my prediction might be a little high. But I still think we can score on their defense.
Carlos Rogers’ hammy isn’t as bad as originally thought so he’s going to give it a go.
Not very comforting, but we don’t have many options. I expect Eric Reid to be busy.
And I’m real interested to see how KC does vs. Indy.
Yeah Chuck, other than the Niner game that is the Game to watch. Some guy on ESPN says that a lot of people think KC was playing vanilla ball on Indy in the last game. But most sports analyst are split on this game. It should be fun to watch. Go Alex!! I would love to see a Niner/KC SB. Alex beats the Niners on a last second TD pass, a pass, Dennis would have a coronary.
Yeah, KC played most of their 2nd stringers that game, Smith and Charles (among plenty of others) didn’t see the field. Pittsburgh was pissed, but Andy Reid was looking out for his guys.
Just kidding!! No way Alex beats the Niners!! Ha ha 🏈🏈🏈🏈
The AFC is hard to figure. Like last year, any one of those teams can get hot and go to the Bowl.
If the NFC isn’t the Niners Carolina or Seattle, I’ll be completely surprised.
I’m curiousa to see how SD does. They snuck in, but Rivers is rolling in a big way.
Yeah amazing what a new coach will do for a team
Colts 31 Alex 17
Eagles 20 Saints 17 (Pack for Seattle!)
Niners 26 Packers 14 Frostbite 5 (OK, I added 4 points to the losers – sue me)
Ginger 27 Chargers 13 (sorry, the refs from last weekend have chosen asylum – no miracle rigged finishes this week)
Divisional round:
Colts@Broncos
Bengals@Patriots
Eagles@Panthers
Niners@Seagulls, those big white noisy birds who terrorize Alviso
Champ round:
Patriots@Broncos
Niners@Panthers
SB: Niners over Broncos 52-20 (that’s 26-10 x2 – Peyton, you know)
You heard it here first. Remember that it was I, and only I after that brutal robbery in the Superdome, who wrote that all the Niners had to do was win 10 in a row. 6 down, 4 to go.