The Washington Commanders’ playoff fate remains in their hands ahead of Saturday’s Christmas Eve matchup with the San Francisco 49ers. While Washington would be in much better shape had it won last week, there is still a clear path to the playoffs for the Commanders.
Buy Commanders TicketsIf Washington can win its final three games, a spot in the playoffs awaits. However, defeating the 49ers on the road is a tall task. San Francisco has won seven games in a row, and the Niners didn’t blink when quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo was lost for the season. Rookie seventh-round pick Brock Purdy has been excellent in three games thus far.
The 49ers rely on a shutdown defense — the best in the NFL — and a potent running game engineered by head coach Kyle Shanahan and led by running back Christian McCaffrey.
Can the Commanders pull off the upset? Here are our predictions.
Bryan Manning
You don’t want to say the Commanders can’t win this game. They can absolutely win this game. However, a lot must go right for Washington to win. The 49ers allow under 75 rushing yards per game. The Commanders like to run the ball with rookie Brian Robinson Jr.
The key for the Commanders in this game is quarterback Taylor Heinicke playing a mistake-free game. He’s done it before. Heinicke can’t miss the easy throws against the Niners. And Washington’s defense must make life difficult for rookie QB Brock Purdy?
Can these things happen? Yes. Will they happen? No.
49ers 20, Commanders 9
Ivan Lambert
As good as we would like to think the Commanders defense is, the better defense thus far in 2022 has been the 49ers. They are third in yards yielded per play (4.8), while the Commanders are tenth (5.2). They have forced 22 turnovers, Washington has caused 15. They have yielded the least first downs in the NFL (230) while Washington is second (246).
They lead the NFL in opposing teams scoring on only 24.5 % of their possessions. Washington is fourth at (31.3 %).
You get the picture; the Washington offense will have difficulty scoring.
Prediction:
San Francisco 20, Washington 10
