Brock Purdy and the San Francisco 49ers were on the brink, needing to a spark to overcome a big deficit and avoid a third straight loss in the conference title game.
Soooo I was in Detroit to watch this game. People obviously knew I was an SF fan.
First half: cheers for every tackle, first down, etc. in the Lions favor. Was ready to let the cats have it and enjoy their due
Second half: stop for the SF field goal, cheers. Then SF finally forces a punt.
Aiyuk ridiculous catch. Uh oh
Next drive fumble. Silence
I could see the thousand yard stares of people who have been there before maybe even a hundred times. Older folks I talked to who had been watching during the 60s
I’m an SJ Sharks fan so I empathize for fan bases of teams who never win anything. But holy fuck, to see this entire city get completely hyped and loyal and lose, was brutal to watch in person. But not the saddest I’ve seen fans cause they’re used to it, which makes it even worse.
I feel like if you have a chance to go up 3 scores, you take it. I don't care that you want to stay aggressive. Force them to drive down 3 times. Put them on their backs.
I get wanting to go up by 7 instead of 3. I get 14 instead of 10. But you get a chance to go up 17, that just feels insurmountable. A team takes more risks, they make mistakes.
That's the move Campbell has made all year. If anything the field goal before half was uncharacteristic. I think you saw the lack of playoffs experience on display. Players cracked when they needed a few more plays to win the game.