Photos: Green Bay Packers fall to San Francisco 49ers

Jimmy Garoppolo threw two long touchdown passes and the San Francisco defense harassed Rodgers into one of the worst performances of his brilliant career, leading the 49ers to a 37-8 victory over the Packers on Sunday in the first of three straight games against first-place teams.

State Journal columnist Tom Oates grades the Green Bay Packers' performance in their 37-8 loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday night at Levi's Stadium.

The 49ers bullied the Packers physically and outsmarted them at every turn, handing them a sobering 37-8 loss at Levi's Stadium.

After going 4-0 while Davante Adams was out and averaging 32.5 points and 409.3 yards per game, the Packers are 1-2 since Adams' return and are averaging 14.3 points and 256.7 yards per game.

Shanahan is the coach who’s had the greatest influence on LaFleur during his NFL coaching career, having worked with him with the Houston Texans (2008 and ’09), Washington Redskins (2010-’13) and Atlanta Falcons (2015 and ’16).

The 49ers enter the weekend third in the NFL with 22 takeaways in 10 games, more than three times their total in 16 games last season.

Sunday night's Packers-49ers game features 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk, who Green Bay's Danny Vitale credits for redefining the position.

Carrying the 49ers is a lot to put on the shoulders of someone who has yet to throw 700 passes in the NFL, and yet such is Jimmy Garoppolo's lot heading into Sunday Night's showdown with Aaron Rodgers and the Packers.

Matt LaFleur tried to hire his younger brother Mike as the Packers’ offensive coordinator back in January, but coach Kyle Shanahan, one of LaFleur’s best friends in coaching, blocked Mike from leaving the 49ers.

The strategy has yield mixed results because the 49ers (9-1) still won two of their past three games. But they also have shown vulnerabilities future opponents may look to exploit.

Coming off their bye week, the Packers have positioned themselves well in the crowded NFC playoff chase, but that's really all they've accomplished to date. Their performance from here on out is the only thing that matters.

If there's a playoff rematch, it would almost certainly be at Lambeau Field if the Packers managed to beat San Francisco on Sunday night and improve to 9-2.

The NFL announced the 20 finalists Wednesday, and 10 of them will make the team. A 26-member voting panel is making the choices.

"It's just a way for me to try to connect more directly to you," the former Wisconsin Badgers star said in a video posted to Twitter on Tuesday night.