The San Francisco 49ers' Monday night loss to the Seattle Seahawks has caused the team to fall in Week 11 power rankings. Well, in all except for one.
Dan Hanzus of NFL.com still has the once-undefeated Bay Area team ranked No. 1 in his power ranking. When the New England Patriots suffered their first loss of the season, they fell, and San Francisco took over their top spot.
Why didn't the same happen for the now 8-1 49ers?
"You know what? Here's the thing," Hanzus started explaining on Tuesday morning during a segment with Andrew Siciliano on NFL Network. "The temptation in power-rankings land is just to kill the team as soon as they lose, but the Niners, there's really no sin in getting beat by the Seahawks the way that they did, especially when you realize how undermanned San Francisco was in this game without George Kittle. You lose Emmanuel Sanders (too). It really put Jimmy Garoppolo in a very tough spot.
"Chase McLaughlin hits that kick in overtime, and we're all saying, 'What a bottomless well of resolve the Niners have.' Yet, now, everyone wants to drop them out of the top 10 or whatever they want to do.
"No. They stay at one until further notice."
San Francisco still owns the NFC's best record, but after a game on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals, it will be tested again with consecutive matchups against the Green Bay Packers, Baltimore Ravens, and New Orleans Saints. The latter two of those games will be on the road.