Niner Noise
FanSided

NFL power rankings: Chiefs stay hot in Week 6, 49ers stay low

By Peter Panacy

HOUSTON, TX - OCTOBER 08: De'Anthony Thomas #13 of the Kansas City Chiefs and teammates celibrate a touchdown against the Houston Texans in the fourth quarter at NRG Stadium on October 8, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TX - OCTOBER 08: De'Anthony Thomas #13 of the Kansas City Chiefs and teammates celibrate a touchdown against the Houston Texans in the fourth quarter at NRG Stadium on October 8, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /
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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – OCTOBER 08: George Kittle #85 of the San Francisco 49ers jumps over Malik Hooker #29 of the Indianapolis Colts as he makes a catch for a first down during the fourth quarter of the game between the Indianapolis Colts and the San Francisco 49ers at Lucas Oil Stadium on October 8, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Bobby Ellis/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – OCTOBER 08: George Kittle #85 of the San Francisco 49ers jumps over Malik Hooker #29 of the Indianapolis Colts as he makes a catch for a first down during the fourth quarter of the game between the Indianapolis Colts and the San Francisco 49ers at Lucas Oil Stadium on October 8, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Bobby Ellis/Getty Images) /

San Francisco 49ers. 31. team. 42. . 0-5.

The 49ers drop a spot in power rankings this week after their second consecutive overtime loss.

San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers /

San Francisco 49ers

Week 5 arguably presented the first real opportunity the Niners had to pull off a win this season, as the Colts (2-3) have plenty of their own issues on both sides of the ball.

Yet head coach Kyle Shanahan’s offense struggled in all but the fourth quarter, eventually going a lowly 4-of-14 on third downs and racking up a mere 66 rushing yards against an Indianapolis defense that has allowed the second-most yardage in the NFL through five weeks (1,987).

Quarterback Brian Hoyer’s stat line — 39-of-46 for 353 yards, two passing touchdowns against zero interceptions and a passer rating of 101.1 — looked good on the surface. But, like we’ve seen for much of 2017, he was largely inaccurate and regularly overthrowing his wide-open targets.

It’s clear he’s not the answer.

If there is a positive for Shanahan and Co., the 49ers have lost their last four games only by a combined 11 points.

At least they’re competitive, and that’s something we wouldn’t have been able to say a year ago at this time.