The San Francisco 49ers currently sit at the No. 6 spot in the NFC playoff picture. If the season ended today, they would face the NFC South-leading Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first round of postseason play.
After winning three straight and watching the division-rival Los Angeles Rams lose three straight, the 49ers find themselves one game behind the Rams, who currently sit at the No. 5 playoff spot.
After last weekend's win over the Minnesota Vikings, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan was asked about his team being entrenched in the playoff picture after an impressive turnaround this season.
"It's way too early to care," Shanahan responded. "I mean, you look at that stuff at the end of the day, but what do we have left? Six games? There's a lot left to be played."
If they keep winning, the 49ers will find themselves in a good position at the end of the season.
Below is a breakdown of the current playoff picture in the NFC, with the first four teams being the division leaders.
- Arizona Cardinals, 9-2
- Green Bay Packers, 9-3
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 8-3
- Dallas Cowboys, 8-4
- Los Angeles Rams, 7-4
- San Francisco 49ers, 6-5
- Washington Football Team, 5-6
Below are the top five teams in the hunt to make their way into the playoff picture.
- Minnesota Vikings, 5-6
- Atlanta Falcons, 5-6
- Philadelphia Eagles, 5-7
- Carolina Panthers, 5-7
- New Orleans Saints, 5-7
Despite the 49ers' situation looking better than it did just a month ago, wide receiver Jauan Jennings understands that it's too early to look beyond the next opponent.
"It's very exciting to see the position we are in right now," Jennings said on Sunday. "... [B]ut we can't go to sleep. We can't be satisfied. We've got to go back to work. We've got a game next week."
The 49ers are scheduled to face the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday at Lumen Field. Then they will close out the season against the Cincinnati Bengals, Atlanta Falcons, Tennessee Titans, Houston Texans, and the Rams.
