49ers nightmare playoff scenario with 3 weeks left in the regular season

The The San Francisco 49ers are favored in a Monday Night Football gamebut the head coach Kyle Shanahan will not take the aging Colts quarterback taken for granted. And here’s a nightmare scenario for the 49ers with three weeks left in the regular season.

The 49ers got a break when the Seahawks knocked off the Rams in overtime on Thursday night. Since the 49ers have the Seahawks left on their schedule, and have already beaten the Seahawks this year, they can win the NFC West. The 49ers would win the tiebreaker with the Rams based on the better record in the division and the split of head-to-head games.

But let’s take a look at how things could go south in San Francisco.

The 49ers don’t want to fall behind the Bears in the lineup

If the 49ers don’t win their division, they face a tough road to the Super Bowl. If the 49ers finish 11-6, losing to the Bears and Seahawks, they could fall all the way to the No. 7 seed.

And here’s why that would be devastating. To finish 11-6, the 49ers likely still beat the struggling Colts. But they would lose to the Bears. And if the Bears are NFC North champions, they have a good chance to be the No. 2 seed.

So consider this scenario, where the 49ers lose to the Bears at home in Week 17. With the No. 7 seed and the Bears in the No. 2 seed, the 49ers would have to turn around and travel to meet the Bears in the first round of the playoffs. There’s no way they can trust that slope.

Plus, the 49ers would have to play in potentially cold Chicago weather. It’s not a death knell, but the 49ers aren’t running the ball well this year. They rank 25th in the NFL with 101.4 yards per game.

Meanwhile, the Bears are No. 2 in the NFL with 151.9 rushing yards per contest. Imagine a windy day in Chicago, where it’s hard to get through. The 49ers would have their backs against the wall in such an environment.

In fact, if you look at all the potential playoff teams, facing the Bears on a cold and windy day would probably be the worst case scenario for the 49ers. Hence the nightmare.

Furthermore, as the No. 7 seed, the 49ers would need three road wins to reach the Super Bowl.

The 49ers can’t afford to slip against the Colts

It should come as no surprise that Shanahan is preaching caution against the Philip Rivers-led Colts. If the 49ers lose that game, their postseason run could be doomed.

So, Shanahan praised good qualities of Rivers, according to nbcsportsbaiarea.com.

“I mean, he’s a little bit older. So he might not be as fast, he might not be able to throw it the same distance as he used to, but you don’t know for sure because you can’t exactly see it on tape,” Shanahan told reporters Thursday at a news conference. “But I see a guy who knows how to play the position as well as anybody.

“I think he had 27 throws in that game (against Seattle), and every ball goes in the exact right spot. He attacked their coverages very well. He played against a very good rush and was able to get rid of the ball.”

It doesn’t look like a Super Bowl season for the 49ers, even though they still have the inside track for the No. 1 seed. If they win their final three games, their postseason projection will likely look different.