Coach Kyle Shanahan of the San Francisco 49ers just knew. Call it a coach’s instinctive reaction to his bitter NFC opponent.
Shanahan began getting ready for Sunday’s wild-card game against the Green Bay Packers as early as the second quarter because he felt the Cowboys would lose to them.
“We were in here previously. When questioned about his team’s preparation schedule for the NFC divisional playoff clash, Shanahan replied, “We were doing it that day.” “Midway through the second quarter, really started to focus on [the Packers].”
With 27 consecutive scores to start the game, the Packers dominated the Cowboys 48–32 on Sunday in what may have been the most unexpected upset of the 2023 playoffs thus far. After the Cowboys’ Dak Prescott scored a touchdown at the conclusion of the first half, Shanahan decided to boost his preparations just in case.
“I kind of did both at halftime because the Cowboys scored at the end of the second quarter,” Shanahan remarked. “And then I was focused on one team in the third quarter.”
With a well-coordinated attack, Green Bay scored touchdowns on its first three drives after the break. With the Packers leading 48–16 at the beginning of the fourth quarter, Shanahan and the 49ers had a very assured victory.
Shanahan was compelled to make a lighthearted comment about a conference foe that had been eliminated, even though San Francisco was expected to make a lengthy postseason run.
On Fox on Saturday, the 49ers and Packers kick off at 8:15 p.m. ET.
