FOOTBALL: 49ers, Colts not ready to abandon division-title hopes

After watching their division rivals battle in a tight playoff race, the San Francisco 49ers and Indianapolis Colts now have a chance to help their own causes when they meet Monday night in Indianapolis.

The 49ers (10-4) are in third place in the NFC West, trailing the Seattle Seahawks (12-3) and the Los Angeles Rams (11-4). Seattle edged the Rams 38-37 in overtime on Thursday night, tightening the race at the top of the division.

A victory over the Colts would accomplish several goals for San Francisco. It would clinch a playoff berth, move the 49ers into a tie with the Rams for second place in the division, and keep them within one game of the NFC West lead.

While seeing division rivals beat up on each other can be entertaining, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said the team’s main focus is earning a fifth straight win.

Shanahan acknowledged that the task will not be easy, even against a 44-year-old quarterback in Colts substitute starter Philip Rivers.

“You don’t out-athletic a really good defense,” Shanahan said. “You’ve got to be able to get rid of the ball. Some people have it and some people don’t. Whether it’s vision, arm angles, mental processing or just having a clear mind in the pocket, when things are moving fast at an elite level, it’s really hard to escape athletic defenders.

“It’s about getting rid of the ball and letting someone else do it.”

The Colts (8-6) find themselves in a similar position to the 49ers, though in the AFC and lower in the playoff standings. They enter the week as the final team outside the seven-team AFC playoff picture, just one game behind the Houston Texans (9-5) and two games behind the division-leading Jacksonville Jaguars (10-4).

Indianapolis closes the regular season with games against the Jaguars at home and the Texans on the road, giving the Colts a chance not only to make the playoffs but also to contend for the AFC South title.

The Colts scored just one touchdown in last week’s 18-16 loss at Seattle, with Rivers starting in place of injured quarterback Daniel Jones. Despite the loss, offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter believes Rivers’ influence on the offense will grow with each game.

“It was really fun to talk through different concepts and different ways to attack a defense,” Cooter said. “The way he saw the Seattle game helped us build that into our weekly game plan as we prepared for the 49ers. It’s been really fun talking football with him.”

Monday night’s interconference matchup features an unlikely quarterback duel between San Francisco’s Brock Purdy, the final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, and Rivers, who had previously retired. The game also highlights a rare showdown between two of the league’s most productive running backs: San Francisco’s Christian McCaffrey and Indianapolis’ Jonathan Taylor.

Taylor leads the NFL with 1,443 rushing yards and 18 rushing touchdowns. McCaffrey has scored 14 total touchdowns and trails Taylor by just 19 yards in combined rushing and receiving yards (1,761-1,742). The two rank second and third in yards from scrimmage, behind only Atlanta Falcons rookie Bijan Robinson (1,858).

Taylor handled a heavy workload in Rivers’ first start last week, carrying the ball 25 times and adding three receptions. However, he has failed to reach 87 rushing yards in the Colts’ past four games, all losses, after surpassing 102 yards five times during the team’s 8-2 start.

McCaffrey, meanwhile, has rushed for a touchdown in four straight games, coinciding with Purdy’s return from a toe injury. Purdy and McCaffrey connected 16 times through the air in wins over the Arizona Cardinals, Carolina Panthers and Cleveland Browns, before linking up just once in a 37-24 win over the Tennessee Titans last week.

The 49ers hope to have wide receiver Ricky Pearsall available Monday after he suffered knee and ankle injuries last week. Pearsall missed Thursday’s practice, along with offensive lineman Spencer Burford (knee/ankle), defensive lineman Jordan Elliott (knee) and linebacker Nick Martin (concussion).

For the Colts, three players missed Thursday’s practice due to injuries: cornerback Sauce Gardner (calf), wide receiver Anthony Gould (foot) and offensive tackle Bernhard Raimann (elbow). -Field Level Media/Reuters