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The clock is ticking on the San Francisco 49ers playoff lives. With four games remaining on their schedule, Kyle Shanahan’s crew hopes to thread the needle once more and salvage an otherwise lost season.
Like in 2021 and 2o22, the 49ers must dig themselves out of a self-created hole and force their way back into the NFC playoff picture. Standing in their way is a common foe — the Los Angeles Rams.
Since 2017, Shanahan’s first year as head coach, the 49ers are 10-6 against the Rams. In those 16 games, a bitter rivalry has formed. While San Francisco has owned the regular season, Los Angeles boasts the most prestigious win between the two teams. An NFC Championship victory that eventually led to the Rams winning a Super Bowl, a feat the 49ers have failed to do twice under Shanahan.
On Thursday, both teams will lock horns once again in an eerily similar situation for San Francisco. While the 49ers are not in a win-or-go-home situation like Week 18 of 2021, they are desperate.
A win would move San Francisco ahead of Los Angeles in the NFC West standings and potentially closer to the Seahawks for the division lead. According to the New York Times, a loss would reduce their playoff chances to less than one percent.
After Sunday’s win over Chicago, Tight End George Kittle spoke about the theme of desperation and urgency shared by the team’s leaders.
49ers Leaders Send a Message
Getty49ers; Kyle Juszczyk and George Kittle bump heads before the game against the Seattle Seahawks
“The message was we need to play with more of a sense of urgency and play desperate,” Kittle said. “Because you just haven’t really sensed that. And I’ve been on teams where like two years ago we went on an eight, nine-game win streak or whatever that was — and it felt like every play people were scratching, clawing and fighting for everything.”
Kittle reiterated that the 49ers have the answers in-house to make another playoff run.
“We have the players, we have the play-makers, we have the play-calling, we have everything to win games and we have to do it out of desperation. And when you’re playing desperate and when you’re playing like ‘hey if we don’t win this game our season potentially is over,’ that desperation fuels guys in different ways. And it’s how you take that and channel that energy, and I thought our guys did a great job of that today.”
San Francisco knows they cannot afford to lose more than one game, and even if they win out, it still may not be enough.
The 49ers’ backs are against the wall, but they have been here before. If any team knows how to run the gauntlet, it is San Francisco.
Taking it One Week at a Time
Getty49ers’ linebacker Fred Warner reacts after a defensive stop during the first quarter against the Dallas Cowboys
In 2021, San Francisco started the season 3-5 and snuck into the playoffs after a Week 18 overtime win against the Rams. In 2022, they lost two starting quarterbacks and still made it to the NFC Championship game.
The core that fought through that adversity still plays on the current team. The 49ers know what it takes to scratch, fight, and claw back into the playoff hunt.
“The message across the board from all of the guys, honestly was just to fight for one win,” said linebacker Fred Warner. “We treated it like a playoff game and that’s what they are going forward. Every game means everything. We’re treating it one week at a time. It’s a 1-0
mentality. It’s just one game coming up. That’s our entire focus.”
As the 49ers enter Week 15 against the Rams, they have one job. Play desperate, play with a sense of urgency, and win. If they can pull it off, all bets are off in the wild, wild NFC West.
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49ers ‘Desperate’ to Keep Playoff Hopes Alive vs. Rams