The San Francisco 49ers once again will not be playing on a Sunday, instead they will be on Monday Night Football.
Last Thursday, the 49ers snapped their six-game losing streak to notch their second win. The double-edged sword effect of this win put them back in draft order, but team morale may be more valuable than a draft pick. Here’s a look at what the top of the draft order looks like:
1. New York Giants (1-7)
2. Oakland Raiders (1-7)
3. San Francisco 49ers (2-7)
4. Buffalo Bills (2-7)
5. Arizona Cardinals (2-6)
6. Cleveland Browns (2-6-1)
The 49ers are not playing on Sunday, but plenty of us will be watching football. Most of the games have teams that should (by logic) lose against a more superior foe, but we’ve seen stranger things happen. Teams at three wins are not on the rooting guide for the time being since the 49ers are still a full game ahead of them in draft order.
Bills (2-7) at New York Jets (3-6): Bills — Root for the Bills all you want, but the Jets have their own issues to deal with, especially with their rookie quarterback. At this point, I would love another win for the Bills to just be safe, but don’t hold your breath on it.
Atlanta Falcons (4-4) at Browns (2-6-1): Browns — The Falcons are much better than their record indicates and Cleveland always finds a way to ruin everyone else’s plans for draft positioning, the 49ers or otherwise. I’d love a Browns win just because I’m starting to like them out of pity.
Los Angeles Chargers (6-2) at Oakland Raiders (1-7): Raiders. Asking them to win a game after their mid-season gutting is like asking a Wile E. Coyote to stop chasing the Road Runner. They are getting thumped. Hard.
Arizona Cardinals (2-6) at Kansas City Chiefs (8-1): Cardinals. Though asking them to beat anyone not named the San Francisco 49ers is like asking someone to build a time machine so the 49ers can get a second attempt for the two times they lost to the Cardinals. Which also happens to be the only two times the Cardinals won a game.