49ers vs Packers Prediction: San Fran to get the job done

Green Bay and Jordan Love have been on an outstanding late-season run and they are looking to continue that by going on the road and defeating the Super Bowl favourites in the early hours of Sunday morning (UK time).

@NFLGirlUK is not so sure that this run will continue. You can read her full preview along with a couple of betting suggestions below...

The Green Bay Packers have already done more than anybody thought they’d do in the postseason. Defeating the Dallas Cowboys and scoring over 40 points in the process. Now, they have to repeat their efforts against an even greater force, the San Francisco 49ers.

The same 49ers that just got an extra week to rest and prepare for this upcoming battle, and apparently started preparing for Green Bay before the game even ended against Dallas.

The Packers are one of the youngest teams in the league, and it all revolves around quarterback Jordan Love. Entering his first career playoff start, Love completed 76.2 percent of his passes for 272 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions. The stat line was shockingly similar to CJ Stroud’s performance over in Houston this past weekend.

Over the course of the season, Love threw for 4,159 yards, 32 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions with a quarterback rating of 62.0. He threw for the seventh most yards, the second most passing touchdowns, and had the ninth best QBR.

Simply put, he’s been phenomenal for Green Bay. Although, I do worry about the Packers defense more than their offense. We’ve seen Green Bay get gashed on the ground multiple teams this season, and the 49ers are known for having one of the best offensive lines in the league with Christian McCaffrey behind it.

Speaking of the 49ers, they are arguably the most talented team in the league. They had a couple of questionable losses, though it doesn’t matter at all. They have stars upon stars on their roster. Brock Purdy has played good football, and this is now his opportunity to prove that he can do it on the biggest stage in the postseason.

He has Deebo Samuel, George Kittle, and Brandon Aiyuk out there catching passes for him. He’s got McCaffrey behind him and Trent Williams protecting his blind side. And he’s got a defense led by Fred Warner that swarms the ball carrier on every single play. San Francisco is also one of those teams that are wonderfully coached, so they always try to take advantage of their opponents' biggest weakness.

In the Packers case, it’s going to be on the ground, and when Jordan Love faces pressure in the pocket. Luckily, these are two things that the 49esr are already good at and should really open this game up by succeeding in those areas.

I personally feel as though the only way the 49ers lose this game, is if they completely overlook their opponents and let the extra rest get to them. Many have said it recently, but the only team that can beat the 49ers right now is themselves.

Love is going to need to be excellent throwing the football to keep this one close. If he can’t remain efficient and control the clock, then there’s a strong chance that we see San Francisco do it instead behind their rushing attack. If that ground game gets going, the Packers might not have anything else they can do to stop the 49ers offense.

49ers vs Packers Odds:

Both games on Saturday stateside have a spread of the away team getting 9.5pts on the handicap. The Packers beat that exact spread a week-ago when downing the disappointing Cowboys and they'll no doubt be hoping that lightning strikes twice. On the Money Line it is San Fran at 2/9 with Green Bay available at 17/5.

Offense is fully expected to dominate with the Total Points line set at 50.5 and Christian McCaffrey is a crazy short 3/10 to score anytime. I'm not sure if I've seen a short-price all-season long!

Bet 1 - George Kittle to score anytime @ Evens

I know most of it was in garbage-time but even before that, Jake Ferguson was running free all-night long for the Cowboys against the Packers D last week. The first-year player out of Wisconsin had a very nice rookie season but if he can get constantly open, then what can the likes of George Kittle do? I think the 49ers coaches will have noticed that and schemed up plenty of passes looking for #85.

Bet 2 - Christian Watson to score anytime @ 7/2

Last week I put up the exact same bet (albeit at a much-shorter price of 13/8) and it fell short as the second-year player only caught one ball as he was slowly worked back in following injury. He doesn't have any injury-designation this week and is expected to be a full-go. Remember, he had caught four touchdowns in three games before going down against Kansas City. The price offered is far too long and is very much a value play.

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