C.J. Beathard isn’t the next Joe Montana. But he might keep playing like him.

Nobody expected much from the 49ers backup, but with the right offensive system, he can keep them competitive. Here’s how.

It’s safe to say that no one was expecting C.J. Beathard to play out of his damn mind on Monday night against the Packers. Backups aren’t expected to go blow for blow with Aaron Rodgers, but that’s exactly what Beathard did when he completed 16 of his 23 passes for 245 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interceptions in a 33-30 last second loss against the Packers.

Coming into the game, Beathard ranked 24th in yards per attempt with a mark of 7.1. He absolutely smashed that a yards per attempt of 10.7 versus Green Bay.

Kyle Shanahan’s scheme provided wide open throws all night, but Beathard still had to execute and make the throws. Even though a late interception ruined what was by far the best game of Beathard’s career, it was still a special night for him.

The Beathard-Goodwin connection could not be stopped

In the first half alone, Marquise Goodwin had a 67-yard touchdown and a 30-yard touchdown. On the 67-yard touchdown, Beathard threw an absolute dime to catch Goodwin in stride.

Sending a speedy deep threat over the top with more than five blockers is a safe way to try and create a big play down the field. This play was a staple of Kyle Shanahan offenses in Atlanta.

The 49ers didn’t have a play action fake on the play, but they had heavy protection with the running backs staying in to block. Using the backs as extra blockers creates more time for the quarterback to get the ball down field.

On the second touchdown, Goodwin ran what’s been coined as “blaze-out” or a “pinch” route. It looks like a traditional post-corner route, but the receiver flattens his route instead, running towards the corner of the end zone. That slight adjustment puts a lot of stress on the cornerback to regain balance and close on the ball.

When Shanahan was in Atlanta, he loved running these routes with Julio Jones. Players with explosive speed and sharp change of direction abilities, like Julio and Goodwin, thrive on these routes.

Goodwin wasn’t the only 49er receiver to get loose for a couple big gains against the Packers. While no one else had the gaudy stat line Goodwin put up, a handful of players were able to pick up chunks through the air.

All five 49ers receivers that caught passes had at least one catch go 10 yards. Fullback Kyle Juszcyzk had a 21-yard reception on a deep out route, but unfortunately he fumbled and set the Packers up with great field position in 49ers territory.

Beathard was in sync with the entire offense all night. The ball was coming out quickly, accurately, and he was taking advantage of holes in the Packers’ coverage. Right when it was looking like the 49ers would pull out the win, the shot themselves in the foot.

Untimely turnovers put a damper on Beathard’s breakout game

After a boneheaded unnecessary roughness penalty by the Packers (when the game was tied at 30), the 49ers had great field position near midfield to potentially win the game. There was 1:49 left on the clock, the Packers had no timeouts, and Robbie Gould hadn’t missed a kick all game long. If the 49ers could just inch their way into field goal range, they would’ve pulled off a massive upset on Monday night.

Then the wheels fell off the Beathard rollercoaster.

Beathard heaved another deep pass to Marquise Goodwin, but the placement was a little too far inside and it fell into the arms of Packers cornerback Kevin King.

It was the only truly poor throw by Beathard on the night. Kevin King made a nice play on the ball, but if the throw was on the outside shoulder of Goodwin he would’ve had a better chance at a catch.

Party over. Beathard was forced to watch from the sideline as Aaron Rodgers and the Packers raced down the field for a game winning 27 yard field goal attempt.

Beathard was lights out for most of the entire game, until the final minute of regulation. Even though the game ended with a disastrous interception, it doesn’t take away the entire game that Beathard had against Green Bay.

It’s not out of the realm of possibility that Beathard could do this again. He looks much more comfortable in his second year with Shanahan and the 49ers. Last year, Beathard averaged 6.4 yards per attempt before he was replaced by Jimmy Garoppolo. This year, Beathard is averaging 7.8 yards per attempt — tied for 13th with Mitchell Trubisky. With the passing explosion the NFL has seen this year, Beathard could absolutely have another explosive game like he did tonight.

Hopefully Beathard will be able to pick up where he left off next week against the ... Los Angeles Rams.