The San Francisco 49ers’ rough 2024 season can be perfectly summed up by where they landed in the post-Week 15 NFL power rankings from USA TODAY.
While power rankings don’t hold weight in terms of a team winning a Super Bowl, they give a good snapshot of how a team looks from the 30,000-foot, national perspective.
USA TODAY dropped the 49ers to No. 19 overall in the rankings, which is a fine spot for a 6-8 team that is 1-4 in its division. It’s who’s around San Francisco that really drives home where their various stumbles this season have left them in the NFL pecking order.
Just ahead of the 49ers at No. 18 are the Atlanta Falcons – losers of four in a row before somehow sneaking past the Las Vegas Raiders on Monday to cap Week 15.
Just behind the 49ers at No. 20 are the Dallas Cowboys – a laughingstock that is now tied with San Francisco in the standings.
The Indianapolis Colts, Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots are the three teams just behind Dallas, signaling the realm the 49ers could fall into with another bad loss or two in their final three games.
As for the rest of the NFC West, they’re all way in front of San Francisco. The Arizona Cardinals are at No. 15, one spot behind the No. 14 Seattle Seahawks. The division-leading Los Angeles Rams are at No. 9.
In a year where the division was imminently winnable, instead of sitting way above the rest of the NFC West, San Francisco is looking up at them while slumming it with the Cowboys and Falcons.
Ouch.
