The San Francisco 49ers are staring down the stretch run of the season with everything still on the table - and very little room for error. At 10-4, they’re in the thick of a tight NFC West race, and with three games left, including a critical showdown against Seattle, the path to the division title is still within their grasp. The stakes are high, but so is the confidence inside the 49ers’ building.
Thursday night’s wild finish in Seattle flipped the division picture yet again. The Seahawks erased a 16-point fourth-quarter deficit to stun the Rams 38-37 in overtime - a comeback that didn’t just shake up the standings, it sent a clear message: this division isn’t slowing down for anyone.
Seattle now holds the edge, but the 49ers still control their own fate. Win out, and they not only take the NFC West - they could find themselves sitting atop the entire conference.
But beyond the playoff math and tiebreaker scenarios, there’s another storyline grabbing attention this week: the return of veteran quarterback Philip Rivers. Yes, that Philip Rivers.
After years away from the game, Rivers is back under center - and he’s not just filling a roster spot. He’s making plays, commanding an offense, and earning the respect of opponents across the league, including 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy and head coach Kyle Shanahan.
Purdy, who’s been carving out his own impressive path this season, didn’t hold back when asked about Rivers’ comeback. “It’s insane,” he said Friday. “To basically step away and come back five years later, then operate an offense and put your team in position to win, that’s crazy.”
And Purdy wasn’t just throwing out compliments for the sake of it. He broke it down from a quarterback’s perspective - the hits, the pressure, the need to stay sharp mentally and physically on every snap.
“He’s a Hall of Famer,” Purdy added. “Competing against someone like that is an honor.
We respect him a ton.”
Shanahan echoed that respect, but through the lens of a play-caller and film junkie. He’s studied Rivers’ tape and came away impressed - not just by what Rivers is doing, but how he’s doing it. “He knows how to play the position as well as anyone,” Shanahan said.
That’s high praise from a coach known for his quarterback standards. Shanahan pointed to Rivers’ timing, accuracy, and decision-making under pressure.
Even if the arm isn’t what it was in his prime, the fundamentals are still razor sharp. “He’s one of the best quarterbacks I’ve ever watched,” Shanahan said.
Of course, the big question is whether Rivers’ experience can outweigh the physical toll of the modern NFL. The 49ers are banking on their defense to answer that.
Their front seven has been relentless during this four-game win streak, and they’ll look to crank up the pressure again this week. Make Rivers move, make him uncomfortable, and force the kind of mistakes that don’t show up on highlight reels but win games in December.
For San Francisco, it’s all right there. Beat the Colts.
Beat the Bears. Beat the Seahawks.
Do that, and they’re not just division champs - they’re potentially the No. 1 seed in the NFC. But first, they’ve got to get through a future Hall of Famer who’s proving he still has something left in the tank.
December football doesn’t get much better than this.