Kyle Juszczyk came up with a huge play on Sunday night in his San Francisco 49ers’ heartbreaking 30-28 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Sunday night. Oddly, he is also being criticized for the same play.
The 49ers were down the entire game until scoring with 37 seconds left to take their first lead. Unfortunately for San Francisco, the lead was short-lived, as Aaron Rodgers got his team into field goal range and Mason Crosby nailed a 51-yarder to win the game as time expired.
But the player who gave San Francisco their brief lead was Juszczyk, who fought his way into the end zone for a 12-yard touchdown from Jimmy Garoppolo.
Jimmy Garoppolo Kyle Juszczyk
49ers take a one-point lead with 37 seconds left
@NFL pic.twitter.com/XsnK6BNV19
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) September 27, 2021
Some have argued that maybe Juszczyk should have gone down at the 1-yard line so that San Francisco could have used up more time. The fullback thinks that’s nonsense.
Juszczyk told KNBR 104.5 FM/680 AM in SF Tuesday that he is “disappointed” by such criticism, especially since that was such a big touchdown for him to score.
Kyle Juszczyk, on w/ us, on criticism he should have gone down at the 1 yl: "I'm disappointed at (the reaction). There are plays I want back, I promise you that's not one of them. You don't get to choose in NFL when you get to score. That was one of the bigger plays of my career"
— Brian Murphy (@knbrmurph) September 28, 2021
He’s right; that sort of talk is disappointing and downright idiotic.
The Niners never led in that game. They were fighting just to score a touchdown. They needed six, not three, which is a huge difference. Juszczyk was mentally programmed to get into the end zone on that play and give his team the lead. He did his job. It’s not like he was a running back in the open field with time to think about going in, knowing the defense wants him to score, and with his team only needing a field goal. The Niners needed a touchdown. Juszczyk gave it to them. From there, it was on their defense and special teams to get stops, which they did not.
Juszczyk and Jimmy Garoppolo did their jobs. Maybe the Niners didn’t work the clock perfectly, but come on. Can beggars really be choosers? Is it not impressive enough that Jimmy G led a touchdown drive in the final two minutes and gave his squad a lead with 37 seconds left? That’s much better than Juszczyk idiotically going down at the 1 and then the Niners getting stuffed three times in a row to lose the game.
Fans and media members often have unrealistic expectations. They can find a way to criticize a quarterback who goes 27/28 for 300 yards and 4 touchdowns in a win over the lone incompletion. Sometimes stupidity just needs to be dismissed.
