49ers divisional playoff grades: Coaches

SAN FRANCISCO – The 49ers massacred the Packers 45-31 on Saturday night. Here is the grade for the 49ers’ coaches.

Coaching: A. Both the offensive and the defensive game plans were terrific.

On defense, the 49ers struggled to get pressure on Aaron Rodgers with four rushers, so Fangio blitzed more than usual. He blitzed Patrick Willis in particular, who sacked Rodgers once and forced him to throw it away twice.

On offense, it was a great idea to use the pistol against the Packers, considering how well it worked for the Vikings in the first quarter last week. The 49ers fed the ball to their stud, Michael Crabtree, often and in creative ways. And they even got the ball to Vernon Davis. This may have been Greg Roman’s best performance.

On the other hand, the Packers had a horrible game plan. They did not attack the 49ers slot cornerbacks, and they did not have a plan to deal with Colin Kaepernick as a runner on the pistol option, and they shockingly did not make any halftime adjustments.

One more thing. Jim Harbaugh ultimately gets credit for benching Alex Smith and starting Colin Kaepernick. Clearly, it was the right thing to do.

Comments are closed.