During their Week 14 bye, the San Francisco 49ers saw their playoff seeding improve without having to take the field, climbing up a spot from the No. 7 seed to the sixth seed in the NFC postseason picture.
Their reward in Week 15 is hosting one of the worst teams in the entire league: the 2-11 Tennessee Titans.
San Francisco has another chance to maintain playoff positioning with other playoff hopefuls, such as a pair of NFC West rivals, the Los Angeles Rams and the Seattle Seahawks, while also jockeying for seeding with a trio of NFC North teams and the defending Super Bowl champions, the Philadelphia Eagles.
Before a tough three-game stretch to close out the season, the Niners have to be fully happy at facing a bottom-feeding Titans squad.
Here's why.
49ers will see a rookie QB in Cam Ward
Good things happen to well-disciplined defenses who limit their opponents from scoring. This should be the case for the 49ers and their defensive coordinator, Robert Saleh.
Tennessee's first-year quarterback, Cam Ward, has recorded just nine touchdowns while throwing seven interceptions, and the 2025 No. 1 overall pick's 30.9 quarterback rating ranks 31st in the NFL.
Though the former Miami Hurricane standout threw his first pick last Sunday in five weeks, Ward has only racked up 200 or more passing yards once during that span, which is good news for a 49ers pass defense that ranks as the eighth worst in the NFL with 232 passing yards allowed per game.
San Francisco's defense has only picked off five catches from opposing quarterbacks. When facing the inexperienced rookie, the 49ers could force Ward to make some costly turnovers on Sunday at Levi Stadium.
Titans have little to no pass defense outside of Cody Barton, Xavier Woods
Just like San Francisco's defense, Tennessee's is also in the bottom 10 of the league when it comes to passing yards allowed, as the latter has allowed 228.5 passing yards per game.
Tennessee has also struggled to intercept opposing quarterbacks, too. With just six picks on the season, the Titans have only two players with multiple interceptions on defense: linebacker Cody Barton (three) and veteran safety Xavier Woods (two).
If quarterback Brock Purdy and Co. can avoid being burned by either Barton or Woods, San Francisco should have no issue moving the ball down field.
A home game against the Titans should not only put Purdy back on track for the final regular-season stretch, but it should also add to the Niners' current three-game win streak.
Expect San Francisco to handle business against Tennessee during Week 15.