The 49ers are trending closer to 15 than 10 overall in this week’s Power Rankings
Sunday was a brutal affair as the 49ers fell to the Kansas City Chiefs, 28-18. While a win against an AFC opponent doesn’t help the 49ers with NFC tiebreakers, wins are still wins, and the 49ers need to start racking up wins. Even in the face of a tougher schedule following their bye week, the 49ers must figure things out quickly.
How does the NFL media see the 49ers and their chances to right the ship?
ESPN.com – 49ers fall out of the top 10 to #13
Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com named Dominick Puni the 49ers’ biggest young riser. Puni started in Week 1, but the list of young risers should grow, with Malik Mustapha starting at safety. Ricky Pearsall and Jacob Cowning will likely see an expanded role with the season-ending Brandon Aiyuk injury.
Here are Wagoner’s thoughts about the rookie starting guard: “Puni walked into San Francisco and immediately staked his claim to the starting right guard job. It’s a position that has been a weakness for much of coach Kyle Shanahan’s tenure since 2017, but Puni, 24, has shown early signs of being the solution. There have been hiccups along the way, but he has a 94.5% pass block win rate (11th among all guards), a 73.1% run block win rate (20th) and should continue to improve. That would be significant for an offensive line that desperately needs an influx of quality, cost-controlled talent.”
PFT – 49ers fall three spots to #15
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk believes the 49ers have to turn things around immediately. While that feels like an obvious statement, it still is true. The NFC West is still up for grabs, but the number one seed in the NFC is likely gone with Minnesota and Detroit at the top of the conference.
Florio simply states: “If they don’t start stacking wins soon this year, maybe they never will.” Sunday’s game against Dallas is a good place to start.
CBS Sports – 49ers fall to #15
Pete Prisco of CBS Sports is concerned with the injury to Aiyuk and believes this injury is too big to overcome for the 49ers. “They have had too many injuries to be considered a Super contender now. The latest with the loss of receiver Brandon Aiyuk for the year really is another damning blow.”
Perhaps after a win against Dallas heading into their bye week will return reinforcements on both sides of the ball to help mitigate the slow start and injuries that won’t heal this season. Everything starts with a win on Sunday.
NFL.com – 49ers fall out of the top 15 to #16
Eric Edholm of NFL.com highlights the Chiefs’ ability to win when things aren’t going their way, and how the 49ers cannot. Still, Edholm believes the team can turn things around and Sunday’s loss will be viewed as just that, a loss on the schedule.
“The difference right now between the Chiefs and 49ers was made clear on Sunday. The Chiefs can survive a poor-production game from their quarterback against a quality foe; the 49ers seemingly cannot. Not having Deebo Samuel due to illness and losing Brandon Aiyuk to a season-ending knee injury were two big blows, along with all the other injuries piling up, but no matter who is or isn’t out there, the Niners can’t have too many more three-pick games from Brock Purdy and expect to win. They were deficient in all three phases of the game, even with a respectable defensive performance against the Chiefs for much of the day. This game ultimately won’t decide their season, as frustrating as losing again to the Chiefs must be, but the 49ers dipped below .500 and face a win-or-else game against Dallas before the bye mercifully comes.”
FoxSports.com – 49ers fall three spots to #14
Somehow, the 49ers Super Bowl odds still sit at +850. That number seems low considering the uphill battle the 49ers face to not only make the playoffs but return to the big game. David Helman of Fox Sports wonders if the 49ers can overcome all the obstacles tossed their way so far.
“How many more setbacks can a team take? The Niners have been weathering a storm since training camp began, and it just won’t let up. On top of the loss, and on top of Brock Purdy playing a clunker, Brandon Aiyuk is done for the year. It’s a long season, and there’s still plenty of talent in San Francisco, but it’s fair to wonder when it all becomes too much to withstand.”