The 49ers had the Packers exactly where they wanted in the Divisional Round game. With the last four postseason wins against their opponent and a playoff dominance since 2012 at home, the Brock Purdy-led Niners were supposed to dismantle the Packers piece by piece. However, it was quite the opposite, as the uninvited guest — rain — significantly impacted the 49ers QB’s gameplay.
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In an attempt to counter the rain, the second-year QB initially wore gloves to get a better grip on the pigskin. However, it only worsened the situation, and Brock Purdy, in his own words, ‘got fed up’ with them and opted to play barehanded. Later, Purdy was caught on camera trying to wipe and dry his hands mid-drive.
This is WILD: in MIDDLE of the play Brock Purdy is wiping his hand dry on the towel
Never seen this before. pic.twitter.com/j0ESsScWxM
— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) January 21, 2024
In the post-game presser, a reporter asked Purdy if the rain hindered his gameplay. Purdy responded,
“I put on the gloves for the first drive. It was coming down and then it sprinkled, so I took it off,” followed by, “I was still trying to sort of figure out what I wanted to do and I was sort of fed up with the gloves.”
Nevertheless, Mr. Irrelevant didn’t let rain be the decider of the matchup by leading his side to clinch the victory with a score of 24-21. In the interview, Purdy also acknowledged that he needs to ‘get better in that area’, nonetheless.
Packers QB Jordan Love Discusses the Rain Game
Jordan Love might have concluded his season last night, but it’s safe to say that his first season as a starter was nothing short of remarkable. Whether it’s the Niners’ home advantage or Anders Carlson’s heart-wrenching fail at the field goal attempt, Love was still very close to taking it all home.
In the post-game interview, Love was also asked by a reporter if the on-and-off rain impacted his passing abilities. While acknowledging the rain as a challenge, Love expressed that it didn’t quite make a difference for him in passing the ball.
“It was obviously raining a good amount. It’s a challenge that presents itself,” Love said. “But I don’t think it was affecting too much in the passing game.”
The Packers and the Niners scripted history last night after locking horns in the playoffs for a total of 10 times. The Cheeseheads were faithful that their team was inches away from securing a Super Bowl berth, but their team fell short in the final quarter.
While Love’s two interceptions weren’t as impressive, his two-point conversion pass to Aaron Jones secured them a seven-point lead in the third quarter. 49ers Placekicker Jake Moody evened the gap with a 52-yarder in the next quarter. Following this, Anders Carlson had the perfect opportunity to add three more points to the board in a 41-yard attempt; however, he went wide and the ball sailed past the left side of the post.
Then came Purdy’s perfectly executed touchdown drive with only six minutes left in the clock. He charged down the field alongside Christian McCaffrey, who rushed for a 6-yard touchdown with a minute left. The faithful were more than happy and dubbed this a ‘legacy drive’.
The Niners have now qualified for the NFC championship game for the third consecutive time. They will host the winner of Sunday’s matchup between the Lions and the Buccaneers.
