The once-dismissed San Francisco 49ers have now won three of their last four with two consecutive routs of opponents. A week ago, it was the dismantling of a division rival, the Los Angeles Rams. Yesterday, the Niners dominated a struggling opponent, the Jacksonville Jaguars, to climb to .500.
Next for San Francisco will be a matchup against another .500 team, the Minnesota Vikings, winners of two straight.
A win against the Vikings could be enough to finally push the Niners into the playoff picture. Below is a breakdown of the current playoff picture in the NFC, with the first four teams being the division leaders. The most significant change from last week is the Arizona Cardinals leaping past Green Bay for the top spot thanks to the Vikings knocking off the Packers.
- Arizona Cardinals, 9-2
- Green Bay Packers, 8-3
- Dallas Cowboys, 7-3
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 6-3
- Los Angeles Rams, 7-3
- Minnesota Vikings, 5-5
- New Orleans Saints, 5-5
And the top four teams in the hunt to steal away that final Wild Card spot:
- San Francisco 49ers, 5-5
- Philadelphia Eagles, 5-6
- Carolina Panthers, 5-6
- Washington Football Team, 4-6
ESPN's Football Power Index (FPI) is starting to like the 49ers' playoff chances thanks to the two-game winning streak the team has put together. In fact, the FPI can see San Francisco overtaking New Orleans for a better spot in the Wild Card race.
ESPN's Kevin Seifert wrote, "At the moment, it is giving the 49ers a 52% chance to advance to the postseason, better than the Saints, Eagles, or Panthers. Minnesota is on deck for San Francisco."
Monday morning's FPI has the 49ers' chances slightly improved over the mark Seifert states at 54.1 percent. That's a jump from the 38.4 percent chance San Francisco had heading into Week 11.
The 49ers will have to continue performing at a high level to have a chance. The team can't afford any more slipups in its final seven-game stretch. After the Vikings come the Seattle Seahawks, Cincinnati Bengals, and Atlanta Falcons. The Niners will close out the season against the Tennessee Titans, Houston Texans, and Rams.