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If you’re going to win a Super Bowl, at some point along the way you’re probably going to need a little bit of luck.
Even the best teams don’t get by without a fortuitous bounce or call here or there.
For the San Francisco 49ers, that luck may have come by way of touchdown against the Green Bay Packers that almost never happened.
One of the biggest plays of the game almost didn’t happen. Clock hit zero at the snap which is legal.
Juice told me, there was supposed to be a TE motion. Purdy knew it wasn’t necessary for the play to work (guessing it was a return motion).
You can see Juice telling TE to move… pic.twitter.com/7huZ9NAb3g
— Ted Nguyen (@FB_FilmAnalysis) January 22, 2024
The 49ers trailed Green Bay 13-7 mid-way through the third quarter of the NFC Divisional Round showdown. Up until that point, San Francisco’s usually potent rushing offense hadn’t made much noise.
But with 7:45 left in the quarter, star running back Christian McCaffrey took a toss play off right guard and through the heart of the Packers defense for a 39-yard touchdown.
As it turns out, the play didn’t go as planned. And it almost never happened at all.
Niners fullback Kyle Juszczyk told Ted Nguyen of The Athletic revealed that star tight end George Kittle was supposed to go in motion on the play. But with time winding down on the play clock, quarterback Brock Purdy can be heard telling Kittle to “stay there.”
The tight end stops his motion, and the rest is history.
But there’s another aspect as well.
The play clock appeared to be on :00 when the ball is snapped. Meaning San Francisco could well have been flagged for delay of game.
That didn’t happen.
Instead, Kittle got a block on the edge and McCaffrey found pay dirt.
Who knows what’s next for the 49ers?
Maybe they go out and lose to the Detroit Lions in the NFC Championship Game.
But it’s equally likely they go on to win the Super Bowl. And if they do, the McCaffrey touchdown that almost wasn’t will be etched in the franchise’s history for years to come.