We are exactly one month away from Christmas.

However, the Green Bay Packers received an early gift from the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday afternoon.

When these great rivals met at Lambeau Field, the 49ers were without Pro Bowl quarterback Brock Purdy, future Hall of Fame left tackle Trent Williams, 2022 Defensive Player of the Year Nick Bosa and standout cornerback Charvarius Ward.

The Packers played extremely well on both sides of the ball, and the 49ers’ personnel losses were too much for them to overcome as Green Bay rolled to a 38-10 victory.

“It’s the NFL. It’s not an excuse,” Packers cornerback Keisean Nixon said San Francisco has left some key players behind. “We didn’t have a quarterback (Jordan Love earlier this year). We won three games, so we don’t want to hear that. We came to play. They should have come to play.”

The Packers improved to 8-3, which is amazingly good for just third place in the NFC North. Detroit leads the division at 10-1, while Minnesota (9-2) is in second place.

San Francisco, which won the NFC last season, fell to 5-6.

Here’s the ‘Good, Bad and Ugly’ of Green Bay’s impressive win.

THE GOOD

JOSH JACOBS: The Packers’ decision to sign Josh Jacobs and move on from Aaron Jones last season was extensively debated.

Jones, of course, is an all-time Packer who ranks third in team history with 5,940 rushing yards.

But simply put: Jacobs is the better player.

Jacobs is extremely powerful and rarely goes down on first contact. He’s handy in the hole. He can block, catch and put an offense on his large shoulders.

Jacobs had a sensational night against San Francisco, rushing for 106 yards on 26 carries while tying his career-high with three rushing touchdowns.

“That’s a guy I’m not worried about: Josh Jacobs,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said. “That guy is an animal. He is a dog and a dog competitor. He definitely enjoys those opportunities.”

In the first half alone, Jacobs had 19 carries for 91 yards and a touchdown. He had runs of 18, 13 and 10 yards in the first half.

Jacobs then added a pair of 1-yard TD runs in the second half, even though he left the game with cramps for a while.

Jacobs’ 944 rushing yards this season are the most by an 11-game Packer since Ahman Green racked up 1,326 yards in 2003.

“I don’t know how to explain it,” Jacobs said. “I actually don’t have any feeling about it. I’m just trying to go in and put my stamp on the game, and I felt like I could do that today. So man, it just feels good when you get a convincing win like that.

TO KILL GOLIATH: The 49ers knocked the Packers out of the playoffs in 2019, 2021 and 2023. A year ago, Green Bay had San Francisco on the ropes but blew a late lead and fell 24-21 in the NFC Divisional playoffs.

Sunday’s match certainly brought some extra motivation.

“Definitely extra motivation to beat those guys, man,” Packers defensive tackle Kenny Clark said. “They sent us home last year, so this was huge for us. We had to get that for ourselves, go out there and play them and play a really good game and prove that we’re at the top of the NFC. So we just have to keep stacking, stacking wins and stacking these performances.”

THE RED ZONE ROBBERY COMES TO LIFE: The Packers entered the game ranked 27th^e in the NFL in red zone offense at 48.7%. That was the lowest percentage of the six-year Matt LaFleur era.

But the Packers showed signs of life on Sunday, going an impressive 5-for-5 inside the 20-yard line.

In addition to three rushing touchdowns from Jacobs, Love threw touchdown passes to Tucker Kraft and Malik Heath.

“I think it all started with the run game,” Packers quarterback Jordan Love said. “I think we made some big plays in the run game. The O-line did a great job of giving Josh some lanes and then just handing the ball to (No.) 8.

“Three touchdowns on the ground for him, a big night for him. I think it all started beforehand. Tuck clearly had that screen. It was a great performance there. Like I said before, it just comes down to running the plays and finding ways to get into the end zone.

SENSATIONAL START: Green Bay put together one of the best first quarters of the year and led 10-0 after the first fifteen minutes.

The Packers had eight first downs, while the 49ers had none. Green Bay gained 126 total yards, while San Francisco had just eight.

The Packers had 87 rushing yards, while the 49ers had just one. And Green Bay held the ball for 12 minutes, 9 seconds until just 2:51 for San Francisco.

“It was critical,” LaFleur said of Green Bay’s fast start. “Just, especially when you’re playing a team with a backup quarterback, to build a lead and put them in a tough spot where I’m sure they probably wanted to lean on the run a little bit more. Now that you’re three scores behind, it’s difficult.”

GOLDEN HANDS: If you throw the ball near Packers safety Xavier McKinney, there’s a good chance he’ll catch it.

McKinney had his seventh interception of the season – tied for the NFL lead – midway through the third quarter.

San Francisco quarterback Brandon Allen delivered a strike to Deebo Samuel, and the ball rolled wide out of the Pro Bowl’s hands. Allen’s pass bounced to McKinney, who rushed 48 yards to the 49ers’ 26.

Three plays later, Josh Jacobs had a 1-yard touchdown run, giving Green Bay a 24-7 lead.

“They dropped a lot of passes, so I was kind of playing for the tip,” McKinney said. “I saw what was in front of me, but I actually thought it was probably going to go straight through the hands because it seemed to be something pretty much the entire game. So I just played for the tip, and luckily the tip came straight to me. I was in the right place and was able to make an action.”

Packers rookie safety Evan Williams said watching McKinney work was a world of fun.

“It’s pretty special, right,” Williams said. “The ball finds him and that is no surprise or coincidence at all. It’s just him putting himself in those situations and being in the right place at the right time, so if something happens where it’s not a catch, he’ll be in the right place to make a play. And he certainly takes advantage of his opportunities, to say the least.”

TAKE IT AWAY: Green Bay forced two fumbles and recovered both in the second half.

Lukas Van Ness had a strip-sack quarterback Brandon Allen recovering defensive tackle Kenny Clark.

One possession later, cornerback Keisean Nixon stripped running back Christian McCaffrey and defensive tackle Karl Brooks recovered.

“I haven’t made a turnover since Week 4,” Nixon said. ‘I was itchy. Finally. Damn. Yes, but it was just a matter of getting to the ball. I was the back corner. They said God rewards those who run for the ball. He rewarded me today.”

Overall, the Packers won the turnover battle 3-0.

AMAZING TUCKER: Some tried to compare Green Bay tight end Tucker Kraft to his San Francisco counterpart George Kittle this week.

Considering Kittle has 500 career catches for nearly 7,000 yards and 43 touchdowns, that’s certainly premature.

But Kraft has a lot of Kittle-like qualities, and some of them were on full display during his 11-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter.

The Packers called a tight end screen on Kraft, who drove over San Francisco safety Ji’Ayir Brown and carried defensive end Leonard Floyd into the end zone.

“Yes, fencing,” Kraft said. “Jordan had a tight window, screwed it in, dropped the step, got vertical, pressed the block, whatever it takes.”

THIS AND THAT: Green Bay quarterback Jordan Love didn’t throw an interception. That was the first match in 2024. Love had no choice. … The 49ers had a fourth-and-2 from Green Bay’s 39 on their opening drive of the second half. Quarterback Brandon Allen threw to running back Christian McCaffrey in the left flat, but safety Xavier McKinney quickly closed and broke up the play. … Brandon McManus made a 51-yard field goal late in the first quarter, Green Bay’s longest field goal of the season.

IT’S BAD

BOY GEORGE: San Francisco tight end George Kittle broke loose for a 3-yard touchdown late in the first half, bringing the 49ers within 17-7.

Working from the left position, Kittle ran right past linebacker Quay Walker, who failed to bunt the gifted tight end. That gave Kittle time to find space, and when safety Evan Williams was late in rendering assistance, quarterback Brandon Allen hit him for a short touchdown.

Kittle was tough to stop all night, finishing with six receptions for 82 yards.

WHERE IS JAIRE?: Green Bay cornerback Jaire Alexander sat out the game with a knee injury and has now missed 28 of the Packers’ last 62 games. There have also been several games that Alexander started but couldn’t finish, such as Green Bay’s Week 11 game at Chicago when he played just 10 snaps.

In total, Alexander played just four games in 2021, seven last season and seven this year.

Green Bay coach Matt LaFleur said Friday that Alexander does not need to go on the injured reserve list. In the meantime, the Packers are trying to make ends meet with Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine as their primary corners.

“You’re talking about an elite player at his position,” LaFleur said of Alexander. “So it’s definitely hard when he’s not there. But… you have to let the next guy step up, be ready to go, and you can never let that standard fail.”

THIS AND THAT: Kittle beat cornerback Carrington Valentine for a 31-yard reception in the third quarter. … Quay Walker dropped an interception in the second quarter. … Running back Chris Brooks was assessed a 15-yard penalty for tripping on a play that helped kill a Green Bay third-quarter drive.

THE UGLY

KILLER DROP: Christian Watson had a chance to give the Packers a 24-7 halftime lead, but dropped a 49-yard touchdown pass in the final seconds of the first half.

Watson knocked cornerback Isaac Yiadom off the line of scrimmage and ran a go route down the left sideline. Safety Malik Mustapha was late to help and Love delivered a strike to Watson.

In the middle of the field, fellow wideout Romeo Doubs was so excited as he watched the play unfold that he jumped up and down. Unfortunately for the Packers, the ball bounced off Watson’s hands and fell harmlessly to the ground, leaving Green Bay’s lead at 17-7 at halftime.

“I just dropped it,” Watson said. “It’s only one, I just dropped it.”