SANTA CLARA, Calif. – The Packers improved to 3-0 on the preseason with a 21-10 victory over the 49ers on Friday night at Levi's Stadium. Here's a quarter-by-quarter recap of the action:
4th quarter
The 49ers closed to within 14-10 on K Phil Dawson's 26-yard field goal on the third snap of the final period. San Francisco decided not to go for it on fourth-and-4 from the 8.
The Packers answered with another touchdown, as Callahan scrambled away from a sack on third-and-20 and then launched a 51-yard completion to WR Geronimo Allison. On the next snap, RB Brandon Burks cut back to his right and ran 19 yards for the TD, putting the Packers ahead 21-10 with 9:09 left.
San Francisco turned to its fourth QB of the night in Christian Ponder, who promptly threw an interception to Packers S Marwin Evans.
At that point, Marquise Williams took over at QB for the Packers, but the offense stalled, and P Peter Mortell pinned the 49ers on their own 10-yard line. DL Tyler Kuder and LB Reggie Gilbert combined to sack Ponder back on the 2-yard line, and the 49ers were forced to punt from the back of their own end zone.
3rd Quarter
A touchdown pass on the opening drive of the third quarter gave the Packers a 14-7 lead over the 49ers with one quarter to play on Friday night at Levi's Stadium.
QB Joe Callahan moved the Packers into scoring range right away to open the quarter. A 17-yard pass to rookie WR Geronimo Allison converted on third down, and then Callahan came back to Allison for a 10-yard pass to convert on fourth-and-9.
RB John Crockett followed with a 9-yard run, giving him 22 yards on six carries on the drive, and then Callahan rolled to his right and hit WR Jared Abbrederis for an 18-yard TD to give the Packers their first lead of the game.
Rookie LT Jason Spriggs played with a club on his right hand that wasn't there in the first half. There was no injury update provided in the press box.
After the two teams traded punts, the Packers got their first sack of the night, as LB Lerentee McCray took down 49ers QB Jeff Driskel, leading to a punt.
The 49ers returned the favor, as LB Marcus Rush sacked Callahan on third down.
San Francisco then mounted a drive, as Driskel had two keepers that gained 17 yards and RB Mike Davis had a run and reception for 9 yards each. A holding penalty on the final play of the quarter pushed the 49ers back outside the red zone.
2nd Quarter
A late fourth-down stop by the 49ers kept Friday night's preseason game with the Packers tied at 7 at halftime at Levi's Stadium.
The Packers tied the score on the first play of the second quarter. QB Aaron Rodgers threw a quick hitch to WR Randall Cobb, who cut inside and dove across the goal line for a 6-yard TD. K Mason Crosby's extra point hit the left upright but caromed through.
Green Bay's defense responded by allowing new 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick just one first down on his initial series. LB Nick Perry and CB Sam Shields each deflected passes to force San Francisco to punt.
QB Joe Callahan replaced Rodgers on Green Bay's next series and was promptly sacked on first down, leading to a three-and-out. S Chris Banjo injured his hamstring covering the punt and did not return to the game.
The Packers' defense thwarted Kaepernick again, as DE Datone Jones tackled the QB for a 3-yard loss on a read-option run, Perry deflected his second pass of the game, and CB Quinten Rollins brought down Kaepernick on a third-down scramble to force another punt.
Green Bay's offense couldn't sustain any momentum, though, after TE Jared Cook had a 13-yard reception for a first down. Cook and Callahan subsequently ran into each other in the backfield on a running play, and Callahan had to recover his own fumble, setting up a third-and-long the Packers couldn't convert.
Another three-and-out by the Packers' defense deep in San Francisco territory allowed the offense to take over near midfield. A 10-yard pass to Cook converted on third down, and then Callahan nearly had a 38-yard TD pass to WR Davante Adams, but Adams couldn't haul it in with a leaping attempt at the goal line.
Three plays later, Callahan hit Cook for 12 yards on a slant to convert on fourth-and-5. Adams then atoned with a fourth-and-5 conversion of his own on an 8-yard grab to make it first-and-goal in the final minute of the half. The fourth-down magic ran out, though, as Callahan threw incomplete on fourth-and-goal from the 5 on the final play of the half.
1st Quarter
The 49ers struck first with a touchdown drive, but the Packers ended the first quarter driving for the potential tying score on Friday night from Levi's Stadium.
The Packers' defense started the game with a three-and-out, though 49ers QB Blaine Gabbert missed WR Quinton Patton on a deep ball when he got behind CB Sam Shields.
QB Aaron Rodgers' first preseason action was a disjointed series that featured three offensive penalties and one defensive penalty that gave the Packers a first down. A 19-yard pass to TE Jared Cook highlighted the early action.
Rookie P Peter Mortell got the first punt for the Packers, and it wasn't good. A wobbly 42-yarder was returned 17 yards near midfield, and the 49ers got on the board first, driving 53 yards in five plays. Consecutive passes from Gabbert to TE Garrett Celek moved the chains twice, and RB Carlos Hyde ripped off a 27-yard run all the way to the Green Bay 3. WR Quinton Patton finished it from there, taking a backwards pass to score a rushing TD with 7:49 left in the quarter.
The Green Bay offense found some rhythm on its second drive. RB Eddie Lacy started with a 21-yard run before adding carries of 5 and 6 yards. Rodgers caught the 49ers with 12 men on the field on third down, and then hit a pair of passes to WR Randall Cobb for a total of 24 yards. The drive came down to fourth-and-2 from the San Francisco 8-yard line, and RB James Starks picked it up on the final play of the quarter to make it first-and-goal.
