Dre Greenlaw had the game-sealing interception on Saturday night, much to the delight of his 49ers teammates.
But San Francisco's star linebacker nearly gave his team a heart attack at the end of their 24-21 divisional-round playoff win over the Green Bay Packers, when he refused to go down with the ball in front of a roaring Levi's Stadium crowd.
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After the 49ers' wild comeback win, coach Kyle Shanahan told NBC Sports Bay Area's Carlos Ramirez, Donte Whitner and Rod Brooks on "49ers Postgame Live" what was going through his mind as Greenlaw ran around on the field.
"I can't tell you how awesome Greenlaw is. I love Dre," Shanahan said. "There was about three seconds where I didn't [love him], I couldn't -- I wanted to run on the field and tackle him myself. I wanted him to get down. But once he did, the love came back.
"He's a hell of a dude and hell of a player, and fortunate to have him on our team."
San Francisco 49ers
And Shanahan wasn't the only one. Tight end George Kittle also went through a wide range of emotions as he watched Greenlaw's dagger pick.
"I think the whole stadium was yelling [at Greenlaw to get down]," Kittle told reporters after the win. "I think I could hear you guys up there yelling at him to get down. ... I was like, 'Dude, Dre, what are you playing, backyard football?' Oh my goodness, the game -- just go down. Especially every time he cut it was like an NBA crossover.
"So yeah, that might have been the most stressful part of the night, was his interception -- both of them. Didn't want to follow the convoy. it is what it is. We'll learn from it."
Greenlaw's interception in the fourth quarter wasn't his first of the night, either. He had a first scramble that might have been just as wild as his second after intercepting Packers quarterback Jordan Love in the third quarter.
Christian McCaffrey, who knows a thing or two about toting the rock, weighed in on Greenlaw's efforts after the game.
For all of the running Greenlaw did Saturday night, he didn't have much to show for it, as pointed out by ESPN's Nick Wagoner. And he even made a little bit of NFL history along the way, per Josh Dubow of the Associated Press.
But at the end of the day, the 49ers walked away with the win and advanced to their third straight NFC Championship Game -- thanks largely in part to Big Play Dre.
The 49ers will host the winner of Sunday's game between the Detroit Lions and Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC title game at Levi's Stadium on Jan. 28, with kickoff set for 3:30 p.m. PT.
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