Update: The 49ers beat the Titans 37-24, and the win puts them in the No. 7 seed in the NFC playoff picture. If the season ended today, San Francisco would start the playoffs on the road against the Green Bay Packers. The Niners remain in third in the NFC West after the Seahawks and Rams also both won.
NFL playoff picture: What 49ers’ win over Titans means for NFC standings
The 49ers face the Titans at home in Santa Clara in Week 15. We break down what the game means for the NFL playoff picture.
The San Francisco 49ers host the Tennessee Titans in a Week 15 matchup that effectively closes out the easier portion of their 2025-26 regular season schedule. They travel to face a struggling Indianapolis Colts squad next week, but the Titans close out a clearly cake stretch that included games against the Cardinals, Panthers, and Browns.
The 49ers are coming off their bye and are double digit favorites against the Titans. Plenty can happen on any given Sunday, but nobody expects the 49ers to lose this game. They’ve lost a lot of players to injury this year, but the players that are healthy are coming into this game with extra rest.
San Francisco 49ers playoff picture
The 49ers enter the weekend sitting in third place in the NFC West with a 9-4 record. The Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks are both 10-3 and sitting atop the division.
NFC West standings
- Los Angeles Rams, 10-3
- Seattle Seahawks, 10-3
- San Francisco 49ers, 9-4
- Arizona Cardinals, 3-10
The 49ers sit in sixth place in the overall NFC standings. They are tied with the Chicago Bears, but the two teams face off in Week 17, which could decide the difference between them. They also face the Seattle Seahawks in Week 18, so that could also decide the difference there. If you add in a Rams loss, the division and as high as the No. 1 seed are in play for the 49ers.
NFC playoff standings
- Los Angeles Rams: 10-3
- Green Bay Packers: 9-3-1
- Philadelphia Eagles: 8-5
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 7-6
- Seattle Seahawks: 10-3
- San Francisco 49ers: 9-4
- Chicago Bears: 9-4
- Detroit Lions: 8-5
- Carolina Panthers: 7-6
- Dallas Cowboys: 6-6-1
Tiebreaker implications
This is an inter-conference game, but a loss would have considerable implications. If there is a tie within the division, the tiebreaker order goes head-to-head record, then division record, then common games record. All four NFC West teams had the Titans on their schedule this year, and the Rams and Seahawks both beat them. If the 49ers were to lose, that would hurt them in the common games tiebreaker. Of course, if the 49ers lose to the Titans, they would potentially drop to two games back in the division race with three weeks remains, so the tiebreaker might not matter in that case.
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