The 49ers started the season with high hopes, and a large list on the injured reserve. Somehow, they're poised to have a first round bye in the playoffs if they win out.
The San Francisco 49ers have certainly put on a masterclass in resilience in the 2025 season. They’ve managed to surmount season-ending injuries interspersed with multi-game absences. Sunday night’s 42-38 win over the Chicago Bears was no different as the Niners were without tight end George Kittle to start the contest and only enjoyed left tackle Trent Williams for one snap of the game. San Francisco is chasing the No. 1 seed in the NFC despite having no business being positioned to do so, and it will all come down to Week 18 in the Bay Area.
The 12-4 Niners will host the 13-3 Seattle Seahawks on Saturday night for the NFC West title and a potential postseason bye with the No. 1 seed that would give San Francisco home field advantage throughout the playoffs. Importantly, the Niners would be 2-0 against the Seahawks this season with a win and that would give them the tiebreaker edge. It sets up a prime time showing for the top division in the NFC. And San Francisco should feel well poised to do that under quarterback Brock Purdy despite Williams’ absence, who was replaced by Austen Pleasants.
Here is the full story from Niners Roundtable writer Alec Elijah on the injury to Williams that may overshadow the team’s valiant efforts.
The 49ers are chasing a spot in Super Bowl LX – which will be played at Levi’s Stadium. To do that, they’ll need Purdy to continue performing as he’s been the last two weeks. He’s playing his best football no question. He was up against a Bears defense that led the league entering Week 18 with 32 takeaways. Purdy was 24-of-33 for 303 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. It follows up his five-touchdown performance against the Indianapolis Colts where he completed 73.5 percent of his passes for 295 yards.
He's only been sacked twice in the last two weeks as well. However, should Williams remain out, that would be another blow that San Francisco can’t really afford to overcome in a postseason run. Hopefully the grit and resilience built into this Niners squad can get them to a Week 18 win and a bye needed perhaps more than any other contender with respect to health.