The San Francisco 49ers won an epic game on Sunday night against the Chicago Bears.
However, they will have yet another short turnaround as they will face the Seattle Seahawks for the No. 1 seed in the NFC on Saturday night.
This is a rough break from the NFL schedulers because the Niners just played on a short week to face the Bears. They played against the Indianapolis Colts on Monday Night Football and then had to face the Bears on Sunday.
Chicago actually had two more days of rest because they played on the Saturday prior to San Francisco's Monday game. Thankfully, the Hawks played on Sunday afternoon, so they will not have a distinct rest advantage, but it's still a rough break for the Niners.
It is especially rough when one considers the key injuries the team is dealing with. Tight end George Kittle was unable to play against the Bears due to an ankle injury suffered against the Colts. Then, future Hall of Fame left tackle Trent Williams injured his hamstring on the first play from scrimmage against Chicago and was unable to play the rest of the game.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan was clearly not thrilled about having to play on Saturday, but these sorts of things are out of the team's control.
Yet, in a way, this rough break from the NFL scheduler makers is benefiting for a 49ers squad that has had the odds stacked against them since the very beginning.
In the offseason, with the team letting go several players, not many would have thought it was possible for the 49ers to be sitting at 12-4 with a chance at a first-round postseason bye. Then after losing defensive stars Nick Bosa and Fred Warner, it seemed genuinely impossible San Francisco would do anything special.
But here they are, winning games, thanks to a high-powered offense led by quarterback Brock Purdy. The 49ers are putting up a lot of points even though their defense is clearly outmatched. That is not exactly a sustainable model for success, but for right now, it's working.
Almost six years ago exactly, the Niners went to Seattle in the final game of the regular season needing a win to secure the No. 1 seed in the NFC. They got that victory, thanks to a tackle on the goal line from linebacker Dre Greenlaw and went on to make it to the Super Bowl.
Now, these two bitter rivals will square off again for the No. 1 seed. The 49ers will do it banged up and on short rest, but they have been counted out all season, so maybe they like it when the odds are stacked against them.