Davante Adams

The Green Bay Packers' Davante Adams agreed that he's the best wide receiver in the NFL right now after Thursday night's victory over the San Francisco 49ers.

"I think that's fair to say," Adams told reporters. "That's not being conceited. That's just being confident. What I've done and what I'll continue to do is going to prove that to anybody who isn't on board."

Adams scored the opening touchdown in the Packers' 34-17 win over the Niners. He also recorded 10 receptions for 173 yards, marking the third time this season he's racked up at least 10 grabs and over 150 yards in a game. That accounts for half of his six appearances.

That success doesn't come as a surprise to the 27-year-old Fresno State product as he further explained after the victory:

"It's been great. It's what I expect to do. I put in a great deal of work after each season. ... My whole mentality was to come in [this season] and elevate. I still haven't done everything that I can possibly do. I've got a lot to give.

"I'm relied on a lot in this offense, and I've got a very talented quarterback. I'm just in the business of maximizing stuff. I haven't really taken a step back to look and reflect just yet, because I've only played six games, and I feel like there's still a lot more to do."

Adams is on pace to surpass his previous career highs in all three receiving categories if he plays all eight games during the second half of Green Bay's season. His previous personal bests came in 2018, when he tallied 111 catches for 1,386 yards and 13 scores.

The California native has also received a terrific 90.3 overall grade from Pro Football Focus.

There's no shortage of other outstanding wideouts in the pass-happy NFL. It's a group that ranges from established veterans like the Atlanta Falcons' Julio Jones and Arizona Cardinals' DeAndre Hopkins to rising stars like the Seattle Seahawks' DK Metcalf.

Adams has as strong a case as anyone, though.

This round goes to the Green Bay Packers.

After losing last season's NFC Championship Game to the San Francisco 49ers, Green Bay enacted some revenge with a 34-17 victory Thursday at Levi's Stadium. Aaron Rodgers, Davante Adams and Marquez Valdes-Scantling led the way for the 6-2 Packers, who snapped a recent rough patch that saw them go 1-2 in their last three games and moved further ahead of the 5-3 Chicago Bears in the NFC North.

San Francisco was notably shorthanded due to injuries and COVID-19-related absences and fell to 4-5 with its second consecutive loss.

The reigning NFC champions are in last place as the only team in the daunting NFC West that is not above .500. The 6-1 Seattle Seahawks are in first place.

Notable Player Stats

• Aaron Rodgers, QB, GB: 25-of-31 for 305 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs
• Davante Adams, WR, GB: 10 catches for 173 yards, 1 TD
• Marquez Valdes-Scantling, WR, GB: 2 catches for 53 yards, 2 TDs
• Nick Mullens, QB, SF: 22-of-35 for 291 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
• Richie James, WR, SF: 9 catches for 184 yards, 1 TD
• Jerick McKinnon, RB, SF: 12 carries for 52 yards, 1 TD; 3 catches for 16 yards  

Rodgers Adds to MVP Case as Adams Shines

Rodgers is 36 years old and looks as dangerous as ever leading the Green Bay offense.

He wasted no time setting the tone Thursday with a deep ball to his favorite target, Adams, for a touchdown on the opening possession. It was Adams' sixth touchdown in the last three games and continued Green Bay's streak of scoring on its opening drive in every contest this season.

There is no doubt Adams is the Packers' top option, but he is even more important with Allen Lazard sidelined. Not even additional attention and press coverage could stop him as he notched a key fourth-down conversion and drew pass interference in the end zone to set up an eventual touchdown pass from Rodgers to Marcedes Lewis.

That production from Adams impacted the entire offense, and Valdes-Scantling took advantage of lesser coverage with a 52-yard touchdown reception to open up a commanding lead before halftime and another score in the third quarter that fittingly came after Adams hauled in a deep ball.

While Valdes-Scantling found the end zone multiple times, the connection between Rodgers and Adams was breathtaking at times.

No. 12 anticipated where Adams would break, made sure the ball was there on time and torched San Francisco's shorthanded secondary whenever there was single coverage. Adams' presence seemingly tilted the field much like a dangerous three-point shooter does in basketball, and the Packers were completely unstoppable.

Rodgers is also in the middle of the MVP race and took advantage of the national spotlight to make a statement in the battle against Russell Wilson, Patrick Mahomes and perhaps Tom Brady.

Undermanned 49ers Completely Overmatched

The team that defeated the Packers in the NFC Championship Game, this was not.

As Billy Heyen of Sporting News noted, the 49ers had approximately $80 million in cap hits for players on injured reserve for Thursday's contest. That number didn't even include Trent Williams, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk and Kendrick Bourne, who were all on the COVID-19/reserve list.

Jimmy Garoppolo, Richard Sherman, Nick Bosa, Raheem Mostert, George Kittle, Solomon Thomas, Dee Ford and Jeff Wilson Jr. were among those sidelined with injuries, which put the pressure on relatively unknown playmakers, quarterback Nick Mullens and even head coach Kyle Shanahan.

Things could not have started much worse for that group as Mullens lobbed a terrible interception to Raven Greene that eventually led to a Green Bay touchdown while the offense managed just a field goal in the first half.

There were dropped passes, one of which came from River Cracraft on a play that would have been a touchdown, and it was difficult to establish the running game after falling behind almost immediately.

San Francisco's offense didn't look much better in the second half until garbage time even though star cornerback Jaire Alexander exited with a concussion.

Za'Darius Smith's strip-sack of Mullens and a failed fourth-down attempt in scoring position stood out, but there was simply a lack of explosive plays with so many players sidelined. It didn't help that the 49ers needed to keep up with Rodgers on the other side, but there weren't many teams in the entire league they would have beaten Thursday with their active roster.

What's Next?

Both teams are in action in Week 10 when the Packers host the Jacksonville Jaguars and the 49ers are at the New Orleans Saints.