What a brilliant idea: The defending NFC champion 49ers hosting the team they vanquished in January to get to the Super Bowl, the Packers.
In prime time. On a Thursday night.
Oops.
The 49ers (4-4) are wrecked by injuries, the latest sidelining their best offensive player, tight end George Kittle, and their quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo. What they present against a Packers team coming off a weak performance against underachieving Minnesota isn't exactly spotlight material.
Other injured 49ers include receiver Deebo Samuel, cornerback Richard Sherman, pass rushers Nick Bosa and Dee Ford, and running backs Raheem Mostert, Tevin Coleman and Jeff Wilson Jr.
"By no means do you ever want this," 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said. "You want all your guys and you want to be going as good as you can. But you have to embrace everything. You've got to embrace the quick turnaround with Thursday night football. You've got to embrace injuries. You've got to embrace everything. The game's too hard that if you go in thinking any other way, I mean, then you give yourself no chance."
Green Bay (5-2), meanwhile, travels west without two running backs, A.J. Dillon and Jamaal Williams, after Dillon's positive coronavirus test, and likely missing Aaron Jones, the No. 1 RB.
Green Bay, ranked seventh in the AP Pro32, is a 5-point favorite at beleaguered No. 17 San Francisco. We'll stick with Aaron Rodgers to be the difference maker.
