Despite upping their record to 10-4 last Sunday with a fairly easy 37-24 win over the Tennessee Titans, the San Francisco 49ers failed to make any headway in the NFC West, as both the Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks overcame 10-point deficits in their respective Week 15 contests, with each earning a victory to improve to 11-3.
On Thursday night, however, the dynamic of the division and the entire conference took a interesting turn, as Seattle defeated Los Angeles in an instant classic, fighting back from a 30-14 fourth-quarter deficit to take a 38-37 victory in overtime.
With the win, the Seahawks became the second team in the conference to clinch a postseason berth, joining the Rams, took over first place in the West, and also took possession of the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoff picture, which now looks like this heading into the remainder of the Week 16 slate.
- Seattle Seahawks (12-3, 1st NFC West)
- Chicago Bears (10-4, 1st NFC North)
- Philadelphia Eagles (9-5, 1st NFC East)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7, 1st NFC South)
- Los Angeles Rams (11-4, 2nd NFC West)
- San Francisco 49ers (10-4, 3rd NFC West)
- Green Bay Packers (9-4-1, 2nd NFC North)
- Detroit Lions (8-6, 3rd NFC North)
- Carolina Panthers (7-7, 2nd NFC South)
- Dallas Cowboys (6-7-1, 2nd NFC East)
With the Seahawks' win, the 49ers now control their own destiny, as three straight wins to close out the season, which would include a Week 17 victory over the Chicago Bears and a Week 18 win over Seattle, would give San Francisco both the NFC West crown and the No. 1 seed, no matter what any other team does.
Up first in the three-game homestretch, though, is this week's Monday Night Football matchup with the Indianapolis Colts, who've lost four straight after their 8-2 start. And if the Niners can extend Indy's losing streak to five, they'll officially punch their postseason ticket.
That said, however, that's only one of two scenarios in which San Francisco can clinch in Week 16, as the 49ers could actually already be in the playoffs before they take the field against the Colts on Monday if the Detroit Lions lose on Sunday. And just who do the Lions play? That would be Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers can clinch a playoff spot for the 49ers by beating the Lions
Rodgers, of course, is a Northern California native and a Cal-Berkeley alum and was hoping to be drafted by the 49ers when they held the No. 1 overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft.
That, of course, didn't happen, as San Francisco instead opted to select Alex Smith that day, while Rodgers, after hours of waiting, eventually went off the board at No. 24 overall to the Green Bay Packers, with whom he ultimately spent 18 seasons (15 as the starter after taking over for Brett Favre), earning 10 trips to the Pro Bowl, five All-Pro selections, a Lombardi Trophy, and a Super Bowl MVP.
The 49ers attempted to trade for Rodgers before drafting Trey Lance at No. 3 overall in 2021 but were quickly shut down by the Packers, who waited another two years to deal him, finally ending what had become an extremely tumultuous relationship in 2023 by shipping him to the New York Jets.
Rodgers has never been secretive of his desire to suit up for the Niners, but the timing simply never worked out. But now, he can at least help San Francisco get into the playoffs by taking down his former NFC North rival. And he's certainly got more than enough motivation.
Despite the obvious desire to win any football game, there's also the matter of getting the Steelers closer to winning the AFC North. But even beyond that, Rodgers' final game in a Packers uniform was against Detroit in Week 18 of the 2022 season. And with a win that day, Green Bay, which was 8-8 at the time, would have gotten into the playoffs as the final NFC wild-card team with a win.
However, with the Packers trailing 20-16 in the fourth quarter, Rodgers threw an interception on what turned out to be his final throw with the franchise, as the Lions ran out the clock following the turnover, thus giving that final postseason slot to the Seahawks, who then lost in the Wild Card Round to none other than the 49ers.