The 49ers got a massive gift from their biggest NFC West rival Monday night.
The Seattle Seahawks upset the Philadelphia Eagles 20-17 in Seattle thanks to a touchdown pass from QB Drew Lock to rookie WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba in the final minute.
Philadelphia dropped to 10-4 on the season, one full game back of the 49ers.
With Dallas’ loss to Buffalo the 49ers are now a full game up on all three teams vying for the No. 1 seed in the NFC, and they hold the head-to-head tiebreakers over the Eagles and Cowboys. They’re also tracking to hold the conference record tiebreaker over the Detroit Lions – a third 10-4 NFC team.
Here’s what the NFC standings look like after Week 15:
1. 49ers (11-3)
2. Cowboys (10-4)
3. Lions (10-4)
4. Buccaneers (7-7)
5. Eagles (10-4)
6. Vikings (7-7)
7. Rams (7-7)
San Francisco will still want to win out in order to secure the top seed in the NFC, a first-round bye and home field advantage throughout the playoffs, but now they have a small bit of wiggle room thanks to their rivals from the Pacific Northwest.
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