SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The San Francisco 49ers‘ playoff drought is over. But it didn’t happen how they wanted.
For the first time since 2013, the 49ers are headed to the postseason but they needed some help to get there after a 29-22 loss to the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday at Levi’s Stadium.
Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan drove the Falcons 70 yards in the closing moments to throw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Julio Jones with two seconds left. Jones caught the ball at the goal line and was initially ruled short but a review overturned it and ruled it a touchdown. The score put the Falcons ahead 23-22 and Atlanta scored again as time expired as Olamide Zaccheaus scored on a failed lateral attempt by the 49ers.
Despite the loss, the 49ers clinched a playoff spot by virtue of the Los Angeles Rams‘ 44-21 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.
The defeat dropped the 11-3 Niners into a tie with the Seattle Seahawks atop the NFC West division with Seattle holding the tiebreaker because of its win against the Niners earlier this season. The Niners currently sit in the fifth spot in the NFC playoff picture and would have to go on the road to open the postseason if the season ended today.
Fortunately for the Niners, after a sluggish loss to the Falcons, the season doesn’t end today.
After finishing 2018 at 4-12 and picking second in last year’s NFL draft, the Niners still remain in control of their playoff positioning. They will close out the season with games at home against the Los Angeles Rams on Saturday followed by a potential clash for the NFC West and the No. 1 seed in the NFC against the Seattle Seahawks on Dec. 29.
To earn their spot, the 49ers had to get some help from the Cowboys. Coming off a 48-46 win against New Orleans last week in which five key players were out this week because of injuries, the Niners were noticeably sluggish on Sunday and the end result reflected it.
Tight end George Kittle was one of the few bright spots, doing most of the heavy lifting. Kittle set a career-high for catches in a game with 13, coming on 17 targets, to go with 134 yards. In the process, Kittle moved into first place for most receiving yards by a tight end in his first three seasons, passing Jimmy Graham and Rob Gronkowski and Mike Ditka. Kittle now has 2,780 receiving yards for his career.
When Kittle wasn’t providing the offense, the Niners struggled to get much of anything else going. Fullback Kyle Juszczyk‘s 2-yard touchdown catch gave the Niners a 19-10 lead in the fourth quarter but the Niners coughed it up on the ensuing drives.
Despite the loss, if the 49ers win their final two games, they would not only win the division but also wrap up the NFC’s No. 1 seed and homefield advantage throughout the playoffs.