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On Sunday, the 49ers earned analysts' respect with their performance at Acrisure Stadium. The team was playing at a championship level on both sides of the football, with quarterback Brock Purdy proving his doubters wrong, hitting his playmakers in the passing game, and letting running back Christian McCaffrey do McCaffrey-type things on the ground.
On the other side of the ball, with the focus on reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year Nick Bosa, defensive linemen like Drake Jackson and Javon Hargrave gave fans 2019-season vibes, causing pressure and racking up sacks. Just imagine what this unit can do once more is asked of Bosa, who joined his teammates late after ending a six-week-long holdout.
The 49ers look like a force and quickly jump to the top of NFL rankings. They'll look to continue their early momentum this weekend against the Los Angeles Rams in a battle between the NFC West's only undefeated teams.
Bleacher Report
Current Ranking: 1
Previous rank: 5
"If Sunday's win over the Steelers was any indication, Purdy's no fluke—and the Niners are one of the best teams in the NFL. There was very little that didn't go well against the Steelers. Purdy threw a pair of touchdown passes and posted a passer rating of 111.3. Both running back Christian McCaffrey and wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk had huge games. And the San Francisco defense held the Steelers to 239 total yards and seven points." — NFL Staff
CBS Sports
Current Ranking: 1
Previous rank: 5
"They were the most dominant team on opening day. The defense looked like it had 13 guys on the field against the Steelers. The offense showed up, too. Brock Purdy is just fine." — Pete Prisco
ESPN
Current Ranking: 1
Previous rank: 5
"Best debut performance: DT Javon Hargrave. Apologies to rookie kicker Jake Moody, who had a flawless debut, but Hargrave's presence on the interior sparked a dominant performance by the defensive line. The Niners had the best defense in the league last season without getting much pressure from the interior, but Hargrave and a healthy Arik Armstead look intent on changing that in a significant way." — Nick Wagoner
NFL.com
Current Ranking: 1
Previous rank: 4
"The 49ers dominated the first half against the Steelers and delivered the knockout blow to Pittsburgh two plays into the third quarter. Christian McCaffrey's 65-yard run started with perfect execution up front. McCaffrey spun past the Steelers' Levi Wallace and was aided by blocks from WRs Brandon Aiyukand Ray-Ray McCloud III. It was just a devastating play from a 49ers offense that was in full command on the road in Week 1. I suspected San Francisco's defense would pick up where it left off, and it did just that. But the offensive explosion was the Week 1 headline, answering any questions anyone might have about the ability or health of QB Brock Purdy. Truly brilliant stuff." — Eric Edholm
Current Ranking: 1
Previous rank: 2
"They've been knocking on the door for five years. They might be getting ready to kick it in." — Mike Florio
Sporting News
Current Ranking: 1
Previous rank: 3
"The 49ers didn't get a lot of respect going into Pittsburgh, but Brock Purdy proved to be the best second-year passer on the field with plenty of help from Christian McCaffrey and Brandon Aiyuk. The defense made a statement all around money man Nick Bosa." — Vinnie Iyer
Sports Illustrated
Current Ranking: 1
Previous rank: 3
"The 49ers simply have too many ways to win, and with a confident ball distributor running the helm, they are as close to unstoppable as any team we have in the NFL. Watch Christian McCaffrey's first down scamper with 10 minutes to go in the first quarter. He has massive lanes on each side of the formation. On almost every play, there are two comfortable avenues for him, for Brock Purdy, for everyone. And when you are forced into man coverage, how do you win against someone like Brandon Aiyuk?" — Conor Orr
USA Today
Current Ranking: 1
Previous rank: 4
"Hard to begin more impressively than flying cross-country and beating another (supposed) contender by 23 points in their own building. The Niners dominated in every phase at Pittsburgh on Sunday, and second-year QB Brock Purdy built upon the historic start of his career. 'Mr. Irrelevant' from the 2022 draft, he's the first passer in league annals with a QB rating of at least 95.0 in his first six regular-season starts and the first to win his first six non-playoff starts while notching at least a pair of TD throws in each. Purdy's lone loss remains January's NFC title game defeat at Philadelphia, when his UCL snapped early in the game. The wing – and this team at large – looked ready to go, S.F. positioned to be better than ever in the Kyle Shanahan-John Lynch era." — Nate Davis
Yahoo! Sports
Current Ranking: 1
Previous rank: 5
"It's simple: If Brock Purdy plays all season like he did on Sunday, the 49ers might be the best team in football. They looked fantastic in that blowout win over the Steelers. I was skeptical about Purdy, but he looked great, the 49ers were awesome and they deserve the top spot for now." — Frank Schwab
Current Ranking: 2
Previous rank: 10
"Fashion from the '90s is coming back, and so are the NFC Championship Games from the '90s because we can skip to Cowboys-49ers for a Super Bowl bid right now. Christian McCaffrey had 169 yards of offense and Brock Purdy became the first quarterback in NFL history to win each of his first six regular-season starts and throw two or more touchdown passes in each of those games. At one point in the first half Sunday, the Niners led the Steelers 223-1 in total yardage." — Josh Kendall
Pro Football Network
Current Ranking: 2
Previous rank: 5
"The 49ers dominated the Steelers from the jump. Despite having legitimate question marks on the offensive line and with a QB coming off a major injury, the team had absolutely no problem thoroughly dismantling the Steelers defense. And it seems there should be no concern about DeMeco Ryans' departure as the defensive play-caller. After all, this is still Kyle Shanahan's defense." — Dalton Miller
