Studs and duds from Packers’ 30-28 win over 49ers in Week 3

The Green Bay Packers used two touchdown passes and a game-winning drive from Aaron Rodgers, a dominant effort from Davante Adams, clutch kicks from Mason Crosby and two takeaways and four sacks from Joe Barry’s defense to beat the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday night at Levi’s Stadium.

Here are the studs and duds from the Packers’ Week 3 win:

Studs

(AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn)

WR Davante Adams: The Packers had a terrific plan for getting him the football. Seven of his 12 catches were either behind the line of scrimmage or within five yards of the line. The plan was clear early: get the ball to Adams quickly – usually from the slot – to eliminate the effect of the pass rush and soften any two-deep coverage shells. When the 49ers played man-to-man in a few big spots, he toasted the coverage. Nine of his catches resulted in a first down or a touchdown, and he drew a pass interference penalty to extend a drive. Most impressively, Adams returned after taking a hellacious hit to the chest and head and caught two huge passes on the final drive. He finished with 18 targets and 132 receiving yards. QB Aaron Rodgers: He was dealing as the point guard early, and then he slammed the door shut with an emphatic finish. Not only did he get the ball to playmakers to all levels of the field, but he made decisive throws to protect the offensive line. His average time to throw was around two seconds, completely negating the 49ers pass-rush. He hit Allen Lazard and Marquez Valdes-Scantling for gains of over 40 yards to set up scoring drives early, and he needed only two throws and 34 seconds to get Mason Crosby in range for the game-winner. Once again, he was deadly from clean pockets. Two of his completions – the 12-yard touchdown to Valdes-Scantling and the 25-yarder to Adams to spark the game-winning drive – were high-difficulty throws with no margin for error. LB De'Vondre Campbell: He was impressive for the second straight week. Campbell is doing a terrific job playing downhill in the run game and also making tackling underneath in zone coverage. He created his second takeaway in as many games when he scooped up Jimmy Garoppolo's fumble in the second half, and he probably should have had an interception on an errant throw on third down in the first half. Campbell is piling up the tackles, but they are impactful tackles so far. OLB Preston Smith: He was disruptive both setting the edge and rushing the passer. On at least two toss plays to his side, Smith held the edge, got off the block and contributed to a stop. It was important to set the tone on the edge because Kyle Shanahan out-flanked the Packers repeatedly in the run game in January of 2020. His sack was an unblocked pressure on a five-man blitz. P Corey Bojorquez: He averaged almost 4.8 seconds of hang time and was terrific directionally punting. The 49ers returned two of his three punts but his net average was still 47.0 yards. His first punt was angled out of bounds at the 14-yard line and flipped field position. DL Tyler Lancaster: After two poor weeks to start the season, Lancaster affected the game in a positive way over 17 snaps. On one drive in the first half, he disrupted two run plays and had a pressure. Maybe his back injury is finally healed and he can play with more power moving forward. The front is more physical when he's right. K Mason Crosby: Last but certainly not least. Crosby drilled all six of his kicks, including three extra points and two field goals over 50 yards. His game-winner was a beautiful hit. Once it started fading back left to right, he knew it was good and the celebration was on. It's so valuable to have a reliable kicker. Crosby is 4-for-4 on field goals and 8-for-8 on extra points to start 2021.

Duds

(AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn)

CB Chandon Sullivan: He broke up a third-down pass to Mohamed Sanu on the opening possession but it mostly downhill from there. George Kittle beat him three times for catches, including the 39-yard catch that set up the 49ers' final touchdown. He was dinged for a holding penalty in the end zone, and he also missed two tackles while trying to get Kittle to the ground after catches. It was a tough matchup for the slot corner. Deebo Samuel beat him twice for first-down catches, too. LB Ty Summers: He replaced Krys Barnes and played 20 snaps. Tackling remains a huge issue for the backup linebacker. He missed a pair of tackles –one on Kittle, the other on Kyle Juszczyk – and was responsible for a big chunk of yards after the catch in the second half. RG Royce Newman: Arik Armstead out-muscled him for a sack on third down in the first half. He put up a good fight on most snaps but Armstead is a handful. The rookie right guard doesn't have elite play strength inside just yet, so it's not surprising that he's been beaten for a big pressure in all three games to start 2021. PR Amari Rodgers: Punt returns have been an adventure through three weeks. The rookie doesn't look totally comfortable in the job. He's a little hesitant catching the ball and running after the catch.

1

1