The San Francisco 49ers must turn things around this weekend against the Los Angeles Rams. Falling to 3-5 ahead of the bye week would be a disaster.
The Niners lost their second consecutive game, with the latest defeat coming at the hands of the Kansas City Chiefs. It wasn't just a frustrating loss. It was an embarrassing one. Once seen as a unit that could carry the team through any offensive struggles, the defense surrendered 44 points to quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs. The 49ers offense struggled, scoring only 23 total points after jumping out to a 10-0 lead.
"We have to score," wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk said Sunday after the game. "If we've got to score 45 points—obviously, it would have been the goal today. But we've got to do what we can to put points on the board. I just feel like we've got too many people that can change the game to score 23 points."
The 49ers have won seven consecutive regular-season games against their NFC West rivals, the Rams, with the latest being a dominating 24-9 October 3 victory.
Below is a sample of some of the more prominent power rankings around the web and where San Francisco currently stands within each.
Current Ranking: 10
Previous rank: 5
"You can understand the instinct for the Niners to make their big move on Christian McCaffrey. Even if Kyle Shanahan's superpower in the past has been making an effective running game out of scraps, San Francisco entered Monday ranked 23rd in rushing DVOA. In Shanahan's first five seasons as head coach, the 49ers only finished in the bottom half of rushing DVOA once (30th in 2018). And it's not as if a healthy Trey Lance was available on the trade market, so John Lynch pushed his chips in for who he and Shanahan viewed as the most impactful player available. It's also true that the NFC might be there for the taking." — Bo Wulf
USA Today
Current Ranking: 10
Previous rank: 9
"Their Super Bowl 54 rematch loss to Kansas City got out of hand late. But a revitalized defense and fully integrated RB Christian McCaffrey should be enough to fuel a rise to the top of the NFC West." — Nate Davis
The Ringer
Current Ranking: 11
Previous rank: 11
"As good as DeMeco Ryans and the 49ers' defense has been all season, this league is run by the top quarterbacks—Jimmy Garoppolo is not among them. He lost a fumble on a strip-sack, took a safety, and threw one of the worst red-zone interceptions of the season, all before being benched for Brock Purdy in garbage time against Kansas City. The 49ers are still the favorites to win the NFC West (+130) and currently priced at -180 to make the playoffs, according to FanDuel, but Jimmy G represents a hard ceiling on the offense and therefore the team's potential postseason success." — Austin Gayle
NFL.com
Current Ranking: 12
Previous rank: 11
"The 49ers have a shiny new toy at running back in Christian McCaffrey -- unfortunately, CMC can't be of service to the defense. San Francisco was outclassed by Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs, who rolled up 529 yards at 9.1 yards per play in a 44-23 stomping at Levi's Stadium. An avalanche of injuries helps to explain how the defense has sunk into mediocrity in recent weeks, and it puts more pressure on the offense to pick up the slack. Sunday returns were not good: Too many field goals (along with a crushing red-zone interception by Jimmy Garoppolo) was the recipe for a blowout loss. Expect a settled McCaffrey to have a much larger role in the attack moving forward." — Dan Hanzus
Yahoo! Sports
Current Ranking: 12
Previous rank: 9
"I'm not sure what to make of the 49ers. It's impossible to deny the talent. It's also impossible to deny they're 3-4 and their last two games are a loss to an average-at-best Falcons team and a 21-point loss to the Chiefs at home. Are they good? I think so. But it doesn't matter much if you're under .500." — Frank Schwab
Current Ranking: 13
Previous rank: 11
"Week 7 was quite the emotional roller coaster for the San Francisco 49ers. Late Thursday night, news broke that the Niners has acquired star running back Christian McCaffrey in a trade with the Carolina Panthers. McCaffrey's arrival in the Bay Area gave the 49ers one of the most loaded groups of skill-position talent in the league. Excitement was sky-high...right up until Sunday's game with the Chiefs started. ... Things aren't going to get any easier moving forward, either. San Francisco's next two games are against the rival Rams and Chargers, two teams with postseason aspirations of their own." — NFL Staff
ESPN
Current Ranking: 14
Previous rank: 12
"Let's not complicate this, the 49ers are at their best when they take care of the ball and play good defense. Their 12 giveaways are tied for fourth-most in the NFL and a direct line can be traced from that category to their record. In their three wins, they have one turnover. In their four losses, they have 11." — Nick Wagoner
Sports Illustrated
Current Ranking: 14
Previous rank: 13
"Excuse time is quickly coming to an end in San Francisco. Having Christian McCaffrey for only a handful of days is understandable in terms of the Chiefs' loss (so is a loss to the Chiefs whenever it happens). But if this offense doesn't soon trend toward dominant, it will be a major disappointment." — Conor Orr
CBS Sports
Current Ranking: 15
Previous rank: 13
"What [happened] to the defense against the Chiefs? It looked ordinary. Can Christian McCaffrey play on that side of the ball?" — Pete Prisco
Sporting News
Current Ranking: 15
Previous rank: 8
"The 49ers haven't quite had the Chargers level of injury bug hit them in California, but their defense, even with key returnees including Nick Bosa, had just enough holes to be exploited by Patrick Mahomes. Their offense also was caught in transition while welcoming Christian McCaffrey. They must rebound quickly to sweep the Rams." — Vinnie Iyer
Current Ranking: 16
Previous rank: 16
"Christian McCaffrey doing Christian McCaffrey things may not be enough to overcome Jimmy Garoppolo doing Jimmy Garoppolo things." — Mike Florio
