Saturday, December 12, 2020

San Francisco 49ers Week 14 NFL Power Rankings Roundup

Throughout the 2020 NFL season, we will compile a consensus NFL Power Rankings that averages the rankings of all 32 NFL teams.

Here is where the San Francisco 49ers rank in terms of average, best and worst:

  • Average ranking: 18.8 (19th)
  • Best ranking: 18th (Multiple)
  • Worst ranking: 20th (NFL.com)

Below you will find a Week 14 roundup for the 49ers in our consensus 2020 NFL Power Rankings.

The Athletic -- Rank: 19

Best-case scenario: They sneak into the playoffs with a healthy Jimmy Garoppolo and George Kittle. This is looking highly unlikely after the 49ers dropped Monday night's game to the Bills. The Athletic's playoff projections now give them a 15.1 percent chance of getting in. In all likelihood, this will be viewed as a lost season where injuries crushed them, but if the 49ers can find some magic down the stretch and get Garoppolo and Kittle back healthy, they could be a frisky playoff team.

CBS Sports -- Rank: 19

The attrition caught up with them against the Bills. All of the issues and injuries have just been way too much for the 49ers.

USA Today -- Rank: 18

Two-game "home stand" in Arizona began with potentially crippling loss to Buffalo. Niners can salvage season, but probably need to win out ... and probably need TE George Kittle and QB Jimmy Garoppolo to do it.

ESPN -- Rank: 18

Person with most at stake: QB Jimmy Garoppolo

The 49ers remain in the NFC playoff mix, and although Garoppolo is still working his way back from a high ankle sprain, the opportunity to return and lead the Niners back to the postseason would be a big one. Coach Kyle Shanahan has said he expects Garoppolo to be his starter in 2021 but that no decisions have been made on anyone's future. Garoppolo's injury history and price tag could lead the Niners to seek other options to replace him or join him in San Francisco. A healthy finishing flourish would help Garoppolo's case to remain the starter beyond this season. -- Nick Wagoner

NFL.com -- Rank: 20

Kyle Shanahan said the 49ers' county-mandated migration to Arizona had "absolutely nothing, zero, to do" with his team's flat performance in a 34-24 loss to the Bills. It's what you expect most coaches to say, but we tend to believe him, based on how Buffalo just looked like the far better team on Monday night. Coordinator Robert Saleh has been rightfully praised for coaching up a San Francisco defense decimated by injuries and COVID-19 designations, but the Niners had absolutely no answers for Josh Allen. The Bills quarterback picked apart Saleh's defense, setting the stage for an Allen v. Nick Mullens shootout that had no chance of being competitive. At 5-7, the Niners likely need to win out and get help to defend their NFC title in January.

+ Previous update: San Francisco 49ers Week 13 NFL Power Rankings Roundup

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