GREEN BAY – Xavier McKinney didn't have to be in Green Bay the past few years to know what it means any time the Packers square off with the San Francisco 49ers.
It's an NFC rival, a big-game opponent and the team responsible for knocking Green Bay out of the playoffs in three of its last four postseason appearances, including last year when San Francisco rallied for a 24-21 win in the divisional round.
"We've talked about it here ever since I got here," said McKinney, who signed with the Packers as an unrestricted free agent in March. "One of the first meetings that I was in here, we had a conversation about the Niners beating us. So, I understand how important it is, and we all do."
In the aftermath of a dramatic 20-19 win over the Chicago Bears on Sunday, the Packers are ready to welcome the 49ers to Lambeau Field for another showcase of perennial NFC contenders.
Since Green Bay tabbed Matt LaFleur as head coach in 2019, the Packers (63-30, .667) and 49ers (59-34, .634) own the top regular-season win totals and winning percentages in the NFC.
Dating back to the Mike McCarthy era, Green Bay has bested San Francisco in seven of its last eight regular-season matchups while the 49ers have won five straight playoff games since 2012.
Earlier this year, it looked like the Packers may finally put an end to that streak when they led the top-seeded 49ers, 21-14, entering the fourth quarter at Levi's Stadium.
However, San Francisco rallied behind a 52-yard Jake Moody field goal and 6-yard Christian McCaffrey touchdown run to retake the lead with a little more than one minute remaining.
Green Bay saw its chance at a potential game-winning drive cease when linebacker Dre Greenlaw picked off quarterback Jordan Love on a first-down pass intended for Christian Watson.
"Being knocked out by the 49ers, whoever it would have been, that game is definitely going to sit with you," Love said. "That's what you've got to kind of sit with all offseason, going back, watching that game, trying to see what you could have done better, could have done differently in that game.
"Just knowing that that's the team that knocked us out, we're definitely hungry for this game."
The 49ers have had a tough go of it in 2024, a year that began with Greenlaw rupturing his Achilles tendon during a gut-wrenching 25-22 loss to Kansas City in Super Bowl LVIII.
The current season began with McCaffrey going on injured reserve due to bilateral Achilles tendonitis, sidelining the NFL's reigning offensive player of the year for the first eight games.
While McCaffrey returned two weeks ago in a 23-20 win over Tampa Bay, the 49ers have lost receiver Brandon Aiyuk and 13 others to IR and the non-football injury list.
Despite ranking inside the top six in both total offense and total defense, the 49ers enter Sunday's matchup at 5-5 after suffering four losses by a field goal or fewer.
Asked if it was surprising to see San Francisco sitting at .500 at the midway point of the season, Packers center Josh Myers quickly agreed.
"Yeah, a bit, to be honest with you," Myers said. "I can see how it happens with the league being as competitive as it is. But it's a good football team and a very good defense.
"That organization has a ton of pride and there's no doubt we'll get their best swing, no question."
The Packers are eager to parry their own jab after last year's playoff exit at the hands of what's become a familiar foe. Sunday's meeting marks their seventh game with the 49ers in five seasons, more than any other non-NFC North team.
Thirty eight of the 52 players on Green Bay's active roster were on last year's playoff team, including receiver Jayden Reed. As difficult as it was to come up short, the 5-foot-11, 187-pound wideout took a lot from the experience and the film served as fuel for his breakout sophomore campaign.
"Games like that you never forget," said Reed, who leads Green Bay with 38 catches for 620 yards and four touchdowns this year. "It's a feeling that you'll never forget. It's just gonna stick with you until you find your way around the hump."
Seven regular-season games stand between the Packers and another playoff bid. For now, all the Packers can do is pick up their eighth regular-season win Sunday while sending the 49ers back beneath .500 for the fourth time this season.
But they know it won't be easy.
"They're a team that's played in big games," said McKinney of the 49ers. "There's always a lot of different factors that go into the season and different things that can happen during the season. But they're still a very good football team, they're still a dangerous football team."
