The San Francisco 49ers cannot afford to overlook either of their last two opponents after losing to the Baltimore Ravens on Monday night. When the four-win Washington Commanders host the Bay Area team on Sunday, they will get the 49ers' best shot. This is the attitude heading into this Week 17 matchup.
Despite already securing a playoff berth and winning their division, San Francisco remains focused on claiming the NFC's top seed. This would ensure a first-round bye in the postseason and position the path to Super Bowl 58 through Levi's Stadium.
"Every week is of the utmost importance," linebacker Fred Warner said. "It is the next one. But given the situation, we obviously know we've got to win these next two games to get where we're trying to go. And so that ultimately ends up [meaning] this game is everything. It doesn't matter about winning two games if you don't win the first one, right?"
Expressing his thoughts on the upcoming opponent, defensive end Nick Bosa stated, "I see a good team. They just switched up their quarterback. They were down a lot last week and made a push to come back, so we're not taking anybody lightly. One-game-at-a-time mentality, and we've got to get this one."
Washington made a quarterback change, benching Sam Howell on Sunday against the New York Jets. Jacoby Brissett took over the offense with the Commanders down 27-7, nearly leading a comeback but ultimately losing the game 30-28.
As Brissett gets the starting nod against the 49ers, who are currently favored by 13 points, the sentiment within the locker room remains steadfast—they will not take the Commanders lightly.
"Obviously, every team gives us their best shot when we come into town, and I think the biggest thing for us is to worry about us," offensive tackle Colton McKivitz said. "At the end of the day, learn from what happened this week and then move on and play our style of football, and control it, and don't turn the ball over, and I think it will take care of itself."
Defensive end Chase Young, who spent his first three-and-a-half seasons with the Commanders, acknowledged the fighting spirit of his former team.
"They're definitely a team who's going to fight to the end," Young said. "I do know that. So we just got to come out good."
Warner added, "This is a good football team. In the NFL, all the football teams are good. Some are in different situations than others right now, but they're going to be amped up, ready to go, just like I expect them to be. And they got really good football players, so we got to show up and play our best ball."
While Washington isn't competing for a playoff spot, and their sole focus is on winning the next two games, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan recognizes that a team perceived as having nothing to lose can be among the most dangerous opponents.
"First of all, everyone always has things to lose because usually when people say there's nothing to lose, there's a lot of guys playing for their jobs too, and those guys know that," Shanahan explained. "Even veterans who don't think that they are, they usually find out at the end of the season that they were. So you've always got guys who are playing hard.
"I know they're playing a quarterback who's won a lot of games in this league. I know they've got some players on their defense, so they have just as good of a chance to win every week as any other team."