Sunday's Blowout Loss Proved How Important Bryan Bulaga is to Packers' Offense

Sunday night featured a battle between the San Francisco 49ers and Green Bay Packers, two of the top teams in the NFC. Expectations were set on this being an instant classic and a close matchup.

NFL fans didn't get that. Instead, it was a one-sided blowout victory for the 49ers, who won 37-8, sending Green Bay to the back of the Pack.

When looking at what went wrong for Green Bay, the catalyst for the domino effect was offensive tackle Bryan Bulaga leaving the game with a knee injury. Bulaga is the best O-lineman on the Packers squad, and his absence proved just how important he truly is...as it always seems to when he gets nicked up and exits a season far too early.

The injury occurred on the Packers' third drive of the game, after Bulaga got his right knee rolled up on by teammate Robert Tonyan. Green Bay had immediate cause for concern, as that was the same knee in which the veteran tackle tore his ACL two years ago.

Once Bulaga went down, it was lights out for quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

The 49ers pass rush had a field day following Bulaga's exit, as they sacked Rodgers three times (not including the strip sack on the opening drive of the game). With the relentless pressure inside the pocket, Rodgers just couldn't get anything going, as he went 20-of-33 for a meager 104 yards. That's un-Aaron Rodgers-like.

On one hand, not every team possesses a pass rush as lethal as the Niners. On the other, the Packers will quite literally have to go through this team to win the NFC, and it'll be a tough front to fight back against without Bulaga.

The Green Bay Packers better hope that Bulaga's injury isn't too serious, as it would hinder their chances to make a deep playoff run this winter.