Shanahan explains his outburst after 49ers vs. Packers that originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
GREEN BAY, Wisc. — Coach Kyle Shanahan disagreed with referee Craig Wrolstad about the legitimacy of the first of the 12-man backfield penalties.
But the other one, there was little room for interpretation. The 49ers blew it.
The rare sequence came midway through the second quarter and led to a Green Bay touchdown.
Shanahan said Wrolstad didn’t give the 49ers an opportunity to rotate to match the Packers’ changing lineup. Originally, Green Bay had one back and two tight ends in the huddle.
“They sent another receiver down the field to the submarine, and when they dive, they should let us dive,” Shanahan explained after the 49ers’ 38-10 loss at Lambeau Field.
“We started changing personnel and then they ran to the line and broke it. It was a strategic play on their part, but I don’t think it should have been allowed.”
The Packers intercepted the ball before the 12th defensive player could get to the sideline, giving quarterback Jordan Love a free play.
“They didn’t give us time to comment on that, and that’s why I was upset about that,” Shanahan said. “And then another one, because they missed the first one, they tried to do it again on the next play.
Love finished with a throw into the end zone where San Francisco safety Malik Mustapha intercepted. Penalties nullified the 49ers’ takeaway.
Shanahan was upset and communicated his objection to Wrolstad.
San Francisco’s defensive coaches then didn’t get the right substitution for the next play. The 49ers were called for another penalty for having 12 men on the field.
“I was yelling the whole time there, so I don’t know exactly what happened with those 12 guys,” Shanahan said. “But obviously we had 12 guys there. They gave us time to dip and we didn’t get one. So the second one was on us.”
This penalty moved the ball to the 49ers’ 5-yard line. Two plays later, running back Josh Jacobs scored on a 1-yard run to give the Packers a 17-0 lead.
Green Bay would score a touchdown two plays later, extending their lead to 17-0.