The 49ers’ ugly loss to the Atlanta Falcons came with a cost. They dropped from No. 2 to No. 5 in the NFL Wire power rankings. Given how they looked against the 4-9 Falcons, it’s hard to argue they should be any higher than that.
Sunday was a strange game for the 49ers. They were hardly recognizable from the physical, dominant, imposing club they were the first 14 weeks.
While their offense exploded for 48 points in Week 14 against the Saints behind a huge day from quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, the fact remains the 49ers are at their best when they’re running effectively. Doug Farrar, who authors the NFL Wire power rankings, pointed to the lack of a run game as the reason for their dip heading into Week 16:
The big problem for the 49ers in this game was that their running game wasn’t as strong as it has been most of the season. Raheem Mostert, who had the hot hand in recent weeks, was held to 54 yards on 14 carries.
The 49ers ran it 27 times compared to 35 dropbacks for Garoppolo.
That’s fine in a game where they fall behind early, but San Francisco was never down more than three points and led for most of the contest.
It’s also worth noting that the 49ers were down five defensive starters against the Falcons, and were coming off a two-game road trip through Baltimore and New Orleans. A lack of physicality is understandable.
However, the 49ers won’t survive if they play the way they did Sunday. They certainly didn’t look better than any of the four teams ahead of them – the Ravens, Seahawks, Saints and Patriots. The same goes for several teams behind them.
There’s a huge bounce-back opportunity in Week 16 against the Rams, but the real test comes in Week 17 at Seattle with the division on the line. If they can find the once-dominant run game by then, they’ll jump back up the rankings and be poised for a deep playoff run.