A game that was supposed to be marred by injuries on both sides only affected the San Francisco 49ers. Aaron Jones ended up playing after being questionable all week, and Aaron Rodgers utilized Davante Adams and Marquez Valdes-Scantling in a 34-17 rout of the 49ers.
Rodgers was an efficient 25-31 for 305 yards and four touchdowns. Adams continued to prove his place among the top five receivers in the NFL with a 10 reception, 173 yards, and one touchdown performance. With Adams receiving the majority of the 49ers’ attention, Valdes-Scantling exploded with two catches for 53 yards and two touchdowns.
“It’s not the same football team we saw last year, but we still needed to execute. I like getting the ball to 17 (Adams) and he is an easy guy to give the ball to. For Marquez to get a couple of touchdowns and the effort from Swerve (Tyler Ervin) was huge,” said Rodgers.
Head coach Matt LaFleur spoke to the performance of Valdes-Scantling in an important game. “After a big drop to start the game on third down, and to see somebody be that resilient and be tough-minded, that’s what we’re looking for on this football team. I thought he played an outstanding game.”
Although Jones was not used as much as his normal workload, the 52 carries and five receptions out of the backfield were a huge boost for the Packers offense. Utility man Ervin had 12 touches for 70 yards and created the usual sweep action havoc that has become so key for Green Bay’s production.
The highlight of the day for the Packers was the emergence of their defense in a must-win game. With offensive weapons out across the board for San Francisco, Green Bay rebounded after a terrible Week 8 game against the Minnesota Vikings. Za’Darius Smith forced a fumble late in the third quarter, and Raven Greene intercepted backup quarterback Nick Mullens in the second quarter, which led to a touchdown catch by veteran tight end Marcedes Lewis.
Offensively, the 49ers simply could not create any production. Mullens was consistently pressured in the pocket and Jerick McKinnon provided little spark out of the backfield. McKinnon only rushed for 51 yards on 11 attempts in a lackluster performance that was capped by a garbage-time touchdown with four seconds left in the game. 
San Francisco’s leading receiver was Richie James who had 9 catches for 184 yards and 1 touchdown. James had not caught a pass in his three games active so far in 2020.
“It felt really good getting out here and getting a win on a short week. I thought we were great on all three phases and it was a great group effort,” said LaFleur.
With 49ers fans questioning all week whether or not Jimmy Garoppolo is the quarterback of the future, everyone can agree that Mullens will not be leading San Francisco to the promise land anytime soon. Mullens totaled 237 yards passing and one touchdown pass on Thursday night, but he simply did not have the weapons to keep up with Rodgers and the Packers.
1️⃣2️⃣+1️⃣7️⃣=6️⃣
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) November 6, 2020
TOUCHDOWN @tae15adams 🙌#GBvsSF | #GoPackGo
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Rodgers and Adams started off the scoring with a 32-yard touchdown connection.
Smith reminded the Green Bay faithful what he can do on defense.
Valdes-Scantling ran a beautiful deep route to secure a 52-yard touchdown.
San Francisco falls to 4-5 and will face the Saints, Rams, and Bills in their next three matchups. With injuries riddling their roster, there seems to be little hope for a playoff push from the 49ers in a packed NFC and NFC West.
The Packers controlled the game in every sense. Green Bay controlled the ball for 36:30, ran 10 more plays, passed for more yards, ran for more yards, and produced more turnovers. Green Bay will host Jacksonville next week and sits at 6-2 which gives them sole possession of first place in the NFC North. After the Jaguars, Green Bay will travel to Indianapolis and face the stout Colts defense in their first true test since facing Tampa Bay earlier in the season.
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