Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love can accomplish something Saturday night that future Hall of Famer Aaron Rodgers never did during his 18 years with the franchise.
Rodgers went 11-10 across his 21 playoff starts with the Packers and nearly half of the defeats came against the San Francisco 49ers.
Coming off his Super Bowl XLV MVP award during the 2010 campaign and first regular season MVP honor in the 2011 season, the 10-time Pro Bowler led Green Bay to the No. 3 seed in the 2012 tournament.
After defeating the rival-Minnesota Vikings in the wild-card round, Rodgers and company fell to Colin Kaepernick and the Niners, 45-31.
Aaron Rodgers was 0-4 in his playoff career vs the 49ers.
Can you imagine if Jordan Love beats the 49ers on his first try in the postseason. 🤔 Enjoy the possibility Packers fans. It’s real.— Linda Cohn (@lindacohn) January 15, 2024
Rodgers finished the loss 26-for-39 for 257 passing yards, two touchdowns and one interception.
Less than one year later, the Packers met the 49ers in the wild-card round and again came up short, 23-20. Rodgers went 17-for-26 for just 177 passing yards and one touchdown against no interceptions and San Francisco kicker Phil Dawson drilled the game-winning 33-yard field goal as time expired in the fourth quarter.
The 2019 Packers and 49ers both finished the regular season 13-3, but the latter earned the No. 1 seed due to a regular season head-to-head victory in Week 12. When they met in the NFC Championship game, San Francisco raced out a 27-0 halftime lead and held on for a 37-20 victory.
Rodgers was an efficient 31-for-39 for 326 passing yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, but Niners running back Raheem Mostert torched the Green Bay defense to the tune of 220 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 29 carries.
The 40-year-old won his fourth regular season MVP award during the 2021 campaign and led his team to the top seed in the playoffs. Rodgers and company were stunned at home by the sixth-seeded 49ers, 13-10, however and the signal-caller finished with no touchdown passes in a playoff start for just the second time.
Rodgers ended the contest 20-for-29 for 225 passing yards and Niners kicker Robbie Gould booted the game-winning 45-yard field goal as time expired in the fourth quarter.