It wasn't until the clock hit zero that the San Francisco 49ers notched their first lead of the game, which happened to come on a walk-off field goal as time expired. San Francisco's offense failed to score any points, with their lone touchdown coming from special teams, however, the unit did make several plays to put the 49ers in the position to win. Conversely, the 49ers defense is coming off of a noteworthy outing where they held Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers offense to just 10 points, the lowest postseason total of the future Hall of Fame quarterback's career.
As the 49ers advance to their second NFC Championship in the last three seasons, here's who stood out in the road victory with stats provided by Jeff Deeney of Pro Football Focus.
Fred Warner - 94.2 Overall Grade
Warner's outing on Saturday against the Packers was a career high. The linebacker allowed just one reception on three targets in coverage for zero yards. He also notched two run stops and a critical forced fumble against Green Bay tight end Marcedes Lewis that was recovered by fellow linebacker Dre Greenlaw.
Nick Bosa - 89.4 Overall Grade
Just six days after leaving the Wild Card matchup against the Dallas Cowboys with a head injury, Bosa returned for Saturday's showdown and posted five quarterback pressures, including two sacks and three hurries against Rodgers, and a forced fumble.
George Kittle - 88.5 Overall Grade
San Francisco's tight end earned the 49ers top grade on offense. Kittle hauled in four catches for 63 yards, all four resulting in a first down. His most impressive catch was the 49ers first reception of the day that came in the second quarter. The tight end made a circus catch up the left sideline to extend the 49ers drive.
Deebo Samuel - 82.2 Overall Grade
Samuel notched ten carries for 39 yards with 30 of them coming after contact. He also picked up nine yards on a critical 3rd-and-7 during San Francisco's game-winning drive. Samuel also added three catches for 44 yards receiving, with 46 yards coming after the catch. The wideout forced three missed tackles rushing and three more receiving. The 49ers forced seven missed tackles total on offense, with Samuel accounting for six of them. He also had a 45-yard kickoff return.
Trent Williams - 80.4 Overall Grade
Williams aided in San Francisco's 106-yard ground game, earning an 87.4 run blocking grade. His most notable play of the night was when he ran from one end of the offensive line to the other and threw a massive block in front of running back Elijah Mitchell on 3rd-and-1 to extend San Francisco's drive. Williams also did not allow a single quarterback pressure on the night.
Emmanuel Moseley - 81.2 Overall Grade
Moseley was targeted just once on Saturday and gave up a total of two yards. He registered five solo tackles and three total stops on the day.
Honorable Mention
Armstead earned an 85.1 pass rush grade on the day, tying Bosa with a team-high two sacks and two quarterback hurries. Saturday's outing marked the first time Rodgers has been sacked five times since the NFC Championship Game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last season.
Over Armstead's last three games, San Francisco's defensive lineman has registered 5.5 sacks alone.
