GREEN BAY, Wis. -- The task in front of 49ers quarterback C.J. Beathard on Monday night is simple. He must take care of the football to avoid a repeat of the disaster that occurred in Week 5.
And as much as coach Kyle Shanahan wants to stress to Beathard that he must be more careful, he must also make sure that Beathard is not tentative Monday against the Green Bay Packers.
“I’ve been doing this long enough to where, I haven’t had many weeks that went like that, but I’ve been a part of games where we did have a lot of turnovers,” Shanahan said during his weekly interview on “49ers Game Plan.”
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The 49ers committed five turnovers without any takeaways in a 28-18 loss to the previously winless Arizona Cardinals in Week 5.
“I’ve learned that the hard way, if you come down hard on a guy," Shanahan said. "Then the guy is just frozen the whole next week and can’t get a first down and can’t make a play.”
Beathard accounted for four of the 49ers’ five turnovers with two lost fumbles and two interceptions against the Cardinals. One of his interceptions glanced off the hands of wide receiver Pierre Garçon, and the other came on a late-game desperation play on a fourth-and-19.
“Where I look at C.J. is, he can improve on a lot of that stuff,” Shanahan said. “He’s got to protect the ball better in the pocket and things like that. The two interceptions he had, one was a throw he could have made easier, but I believe Pierre could have caught it. And so does Pierre.
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“I try not to lose perspective on it. I don’t want to overreact. We all know why we lost that game. C.J. knows why we lost that game, but it wasn’t just C.J. It was our entire offense, and I have a huge part in that. And I think our team understands that if we do turn the ball over, we also have to get some turnovers to balance it out.”
The 49ers have lost three consecutive games, including both starts with Beathard at quarterback since Jimmy Garoppolo sustained a season-ending knee injury. The 49ers view the Monday night game as an opportunity to make amends for a disappointing performance against Arizona at Levi's Stadium.
“It’s definitely something to look forward to and a great opportunity for us,” Beathard said. “A Monday night game in Lambeau, historic stadium. We’re playing a great team. It’s everything you ask for.
“We’ve just got to go in and handle the noise, handle the crowd and go out and execute and try to take care of the ball and just do the little things right. I think if we do that and play well and our defense plays well, special teams, we can give ourselves a good chance.”
Shanahan has never wavered in his belief of Beathard, who has completed 57 of 91 pass attempts (62.6 percent) in his two starts for 647 yards with four touchdowns and four interceptions.
“I think C.J. is made of the right stuff,” Shanahan said. “C.J. is a guy who doesn’t get too high, doesn’t get too low. The game is not too big for him. If we play well around C.J., I think C.J. will play very good for us.
“You make sure a guy understands it and respects the situation. I can promise you, C.J. does and I’m sure he’ll take care of the ball much better this week.”