When San Francisco coach Jim Harbaugh benched veteran quarterback Alex Smith for the younger, unproven backup Colin Kaepernick, many people thought it would backfire once the playoffs started.  That may still prove to be true, but not on a night when the Green Bay Packers played one of the worst defensive games in front of a national audience.

The Packers went to San Francisco with high hopes and left with a 45-31 loss that wasn't even as close as the score indicates.  The Packers gave up 579 total yards and 45 points on defense and got their final touchdown when the game was already out of hand.  Now the Packers face many questions, including will or should defensive coordinator Dom Capers be back with the team next year?

The Packers surrendered over 400 yards to Kaepernick alone and the young quarterback accounted for 4 touchdowns, after opening the game by having an interception returned for a touchdown.

Aaron Rodgers threw for 257 yards and 2 touchdowns for the Packers, along with one interception on a deep pass down the middle in the first half.

All night long the Packers defense seemed out of place and a step slow, never figuring out how to defend the agile Kaepernick who ran for 181 yards and 2 touchdowns, including a 56-yard back breaker in the second half.  The Packers had all week to figure out a plan to stop Kaepernick, but they simply couldn't Saturday night.

San Francisco is now one win away from the Super Bowl and will either travel to Atlanta to play the Falcons or host the Seattle Seahawks next Sunday, depending on the outcome of this Sunday's game.

The Packers, who won the NFC North, will now begin to address their shortcomings this season, which should certainly focus once again on their defense.

Thoughts on the game?

 

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