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Brock Purdy likes having George Kittle as a teammate, and perhaps the two of them will help the San Francisco 49ers play spoiler against the Lions on Monday night. With a San Francisco 49ers Week 17 game scheduled against the Lions, the 49ers don’t have much to gain team-wise. Ahead of the 49ers-Lions game, we’ll be making our 49ers Week 17 predictions.
Detroit certainly has the motivation to beat the 49ers. The Lions blew a 17-point lead in last year’s championship game against the 49ers. But this year the Lions are 13-2 and chasing the NFC’s No. 1 seed while the 49ers are 6-9 and eliminated from postseason consideration.
Lions head coach Dan Campbell said his team wants to avenge the tough 34-31 loss, according to espn.com.
“Anytime we lose, the thought of losing is going to motivate you to not want to lose again, particularly with where you were at,” Campbell said. “So, that’s always going to bring its own level of motivation to it. But this is where we’re at in the season. We know that we need another win. (And) we understand where we’re at in the division and the NFC. So I think it’s all-encompassing.”
49ers DE Nick Bosa will get a sack against Jared Goff
With only seven sacks in 12 games, it hasn’t been a great year for Bosa. He will likely end a string of three straight Pro Bowl appearances.
But he said the 49ers haven’t quit.
“It’s obviously not where you want to be this time of year,” Bosa said. “It’s different, especially watching where we’re at last year against this team. Just that feeling of December, January football is a feeling that I’ve gotten used to being really competitive and being in the mix. I think we’re doing a good job of staying engaged and obviously this is our job, so we’re going to finish it strong.”
Bosa said it’s not fun to see what the Lions are doing this year, according to Sports Illustrated.
“They're doing great and we had an off year,” Bosa said. “(But) it's not hard to come into work. There are much worse jobs to have than playing a sport and making good money. Happy to come in.”
Head coach Kyle Shanahan said it’s part of the job, according to nbcsportsbayarea.com.
“Got to tell them welcome to the reality of the world,” Shanahan said. “I think that's a credit to some of the situations we've been in here the last few years. But that's not the only reason you play. This is your job, you're putting on a 49er uniform.”
QB Brock Purdy will throw 3 TD passes for first time in 8 weeks
Purdy has been OK this year. But that’s it. Just OK. He has thrown for 3,487 yards with 17 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He can forget about a second straight Pro Bowl honor.
But the Lions’ defense has struggled of late, and Purdy should be able to make some plays and get his team into the end zone.
Shanahan said Purdy will grow from this year’s tough experiences, according to Sports Illustrated.
“He's in a more challenging situation this year,” Shanahan said. “He's got two more weeks of it. I think it's going to end up being really good for him in the long run. I thought he played at such a high level in some situations last year that some were good and easier, but then some were tough.
“Just like even both playoff games, some of the situations we were in and him leading us back to end up winning both of those and go to the Super Bowl. I think this year just having a number of his guys down and things like that has been harder on him but usually that stuff can make you better. I think he's fought through it all year. He’s got two more weeks to fight through it and hopefully we can still improve in these two weeks and then get to the film in the offseason.”
Purdy has kept a steady edge, Shanahan added.
“Brock's a very strong person,” Shanahan said. “I think he's disappointed. He had high expectations this year, just like we all did. I also don't think he hasn't ever been in a losing situation yet. So, I think that's very hard for him. But to watch how he responds each week, to watch how he practices, to watch how he is in the meetings, he's always the same guy and nothing's changed in that way.”
WR Deebo Samuel will score for a second straight game
It has been a tough season individually for Samuel, who has only found the end zone three times all year.
But he had a bounce-back game with 96 yards receiving, 25 rushing, and a touchdown in last week’s loss to the Dolphins.
Look for the sixth-year veteran to continue that surge and finish the 2024 season on a strong note.
Shanahan said he doesn’t think Samuel has slowed down, according to nbcsports.com.
“I think he got banged up earlier in the year,” Shanahan said. “I thought he had an awesome training camp to where I’d say he didn’t slow down at all. But by no means do I think he’s lost it or anything. Then his looks haven’t been quite as good this year, just like for everybody. When the 10 guys around you aren’t doing quite as good, whether it’s him, whether it’s the quarterback, whether it’s O-Line, you’re not going to do as good as you did the year before.”
