If there is any positive spin to San Francisco having to play
Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints in the NFC divisional
playoffs it’s that the 49ers will be ready for any quarterback that
lies ahead, should they survive Saturday.
Before they can face Aaron Rodgers on the frozen tundra, in a
conference championship game many have dreamed about since the 2005
NFL draft, the 49ers first have to figure out how to slow Brees. Do
that, and the San Francisco defense will be as ready as ever for
Green Bay.
If there is any positive spin to San Francisco having to play Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints in the NFC divisional playoffs it’s that the 49ers will be ready for any quarterback that lies ahead, should they survive Saturday.
Before they can face Aaron Rodgers on the frozen tundra, in a conference championship game many have dreamed about since the 2005 NFL draft, the 49ers first have to figure out how to slow Brees. Do that, and the San Francisco defense will be as ready as ever for Green Bay.
Brees looked unstoppable last week while shredding the seventh-ranked pass defense for 466 yards and three touchdown passes in a 45-28 wild card victory over Detroit. He led the league in passing yards (5,476), completion percentage (71.2) and touchdown passes (46) this regular season and was most dominant during the past two months, averaging 341 yards passing a game with 27 touchdowns to four interceptions. The Saints meanwhile won eight straight.
Brees would be a shoo-in for MVP if not for the passing numbers – 4,643 yards, 68.3 completion percentage, 45 touchdowns, six interceptions to Brees’ 14 – Rodgers has put up this season for Green Bay (15-1).
As the top seed and defending Super Bowl-champs, the Packers pose the biggest threat to San Francisco in the NFC. The 49ers might be Green Bay’s biggest obstacle, though, given that San Francisco is ranked fourth both in total defense and passing yards allowed (308.1) per game, tops in the NFC. The 49ers just might be able to keep up with Green Bay’s receivers and get pressure on the quarterback, just as they will have to do Saturday (1:30 p.m. Fox) against visiting New Orleans.
Stopping Brees and beating the slightly favored Saints would make for a big surprise, according to some pundits. But what would be more fitting for these 49ers?
- Alabama’s 21-0 victory over LSU in Monday’s BCS National Championship in New Orleans left no question who the best team in college football is.
It did, however, leave me wondering what exactly a plus-one system would have accomplished this year. Wouldn’t Alabama and LSU have just played each other again?
Fixing college football’s postseason might be tougher than we think.
- I have heard and read a lot of recent complaints from Cal and Stanford football fans, regarding the Pacific-12 Conference scheduling the Big Game for Oct. 20, 2012, as opposed to its traditional spot in November, to maximize ratings and television money.
They are right to be upset. Then again they are also fortunate to even have an annual rivalry game with all the conference realignment taking place. College football has become more and more about big-money BCS games and TV contracts and less and less about tradition.
When the Stanford and Cal fans pile into the newly renovated Memorial Stadium on Oct. 20 and Stanford Stadium in 2013, as they will every year regardless of when the game is played, they should count their blessings and think of some of the other great rivalries that no longer have an annual showdown, like Texas-Texas A&M, Nebraska-Oklahoma and Missouri-Kansas.
Need something to shoot for late in the season? Try a conference championship.
- Live Oak wrestler Isaiah Locsin on Wednesday told me he plans to take the mat in at least some league duals this winter, now that the Acorns are in the Mount Hamilton Division.
That should be welcome news to Live Oak fans, who have had few opportunities to see the section champion and state runner-up in action because Locsin saves up for elite tournaments outside of the area, like the Doc Buchanan Invitational he won Saturday in Clovis.
Mark your calendars for Jan. 24, when No. 13-ranked Live Oak takes on No. 16 Overfelt in San Jose. Locsin, listed No. 1 in the section at 113 pounds, will likely wrestle No. 4 Alexis Arciga.
