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The San Francisco 49ers are currently in line for the seventh or eighth pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. They have an identical record and strength of schedule to the New York Jets, and since they are in different conferences, a coin toss will determine who picks first among them.
That is, of course, provided they both finish with the same record and the same strength of schedule, which isn’t guaranteed. Currently, the 49ers are 5-10, which means there are two 4-11 teams, three other 5-10 teams and three 6-9 teams who are all within their range, though strength of schedule is tricky and can go a number of ways after another week of play.
They are out of range of the top three picks regardless of what happens, as the Cleveland Browns are winless, the New York Giants have two wins and the Indianapolis Colts have three wins.
These are the games you should care about on Sunday, and why.
Houston Texans (4-11) at Indianapolis Colts (3-12): Houston — Earlier in the year, we were rooting for the Colts, but they are guaranteed a better pick than the 49ers. So the Texans it is.
New Orleans Saints (11-4) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-11): Tampa Bay — We would normally be rooting for the Saints due to the 49ers having their second-round pick, but the Buccaneers are still within range of the 49ers, and the Saints are going to the playoffs, so their draft slot will be determined by playoff finish.
Kansas City Chiefs (9-6) at Denver Broncos (5-10): Denver — I don’t think there is much chance Denver wins this game, but they have a much lower strength of schedule than the 49ers, so a win would be nice.
New York Jets (5-10) at New England Patriots (12-3): New York — At least it’s the Patriots, a team that’s very easy to root against. Just keep that in mind.
San Francisco 49ers (5-10) at Los Angeles Rams (11-4): Los Angeles — For us, the best thing is for the 49ers to lose. Of course, I don’t actually want that, but as far as the NFL Draft is concerned, a loss would be best.
Chicago Bears (5-10) at Minnesota Vikings (12-3): Chicago — We’ve seen how bad the Bears can be. They could win as the Vikings should be resting some starters but ... they still probably won’t.
Cincinnati Bengals (6-9) at Baltimore Ravens (9-6): Cincinnati — The Bengals have the lowest strength of schedule among all the teams that the 49ers are competing with for draft positioning.
Oakland Raiders (6-9) at Los Angeles Chargers (8-7): Oakland — Some of you can’t handle rooting for the Raiders and I understand that. Too bad.
Buffalo Bills (8-7) at Miami Dolphins (6-9): Miami — The Dolphins pick the lowest of all the teams we care about right now at No. 12 going into Sunday. But they can swing several spots in either direction. We’d prefer it goes the way that has them picking later.