Playoffs still in reach for 49ers after Sunday's win

San Francisco 49ers running back Frank Gore hauls in
a 4-yard touchdown in the second quarter during an
NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars in
San Francisco, Sunday, Nov. 29, 2009.
(AP Photo/Tony Avelar)

There's an excitement in the 49ers locker room after the team's 20-3 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Prior to being made available to the media following the game, the entire 49ers team huddled around a television to watch the ending of the Cardinals-Titans game.

At first, I didn't know why the team wouldn't let the media go in to the locker room and make us wait so long. Then I heard a roar of cheers from inside. The Titans had won and the 49ers playoff hopes were still intact.

“That is very exciting!" said head coach Mike Singletary.

And there is excitement surrounding the whole team. Even though players were downtalking the importance of the Cardinals loss, the focus for the team was still on their goal of winning the games that they had.

"I think that singular focus, that’s one of the reasons I think you saw success today," said quarterback Alex Smith. "When you start looking down the line in this game, you’re in trouble I think. So, now it’s move on. We’ve got to learn from this game and we play Seattle. So, it’s moving on from there.”  

"One eye is focusing on the next game and the other eye is focusing on the big picture," said linebacker Takeo Spikes. "If we continue to do that, I think at the end of the day when we look back in December it’s going to take care of itself, I guarantee you that.”

Singletary refused to talk about the Cardinals when asked about them a few weeks ago. But this week, he understood that the team's playoff hopes ride on the Cardinals' next games.

"One of the things that I don’t want our team doing is looking at what Arizona is doing, but you can’t help," he said. "If a situation works out like that, that’s fantastic. We just have to make sure that we earn the right to look at what they’re doing and we’ve got to take care of business on our side.”

Right now, we can still talk about the 49ers and their fight to make the playoffs.

At 5-6, the 49ers are still two games back in the Wild Card race. However, their best entry into the playoffs might be through the NFC West division. The Arizona loss puts the Cardinals at 7-4 and drops them to a two-game lead over San Francisco. The 49ers have a winnable game in Seattle next week while the Cardinals face the red hot Minnesota Vikings. A 49ers win and another Cardinals loss sets up their Monday Night matchup on December 14 a battle for first place. A 49ers win against the Cardinals gives them the tiebreaker for the division lead.

Two weeks ago, the idea of the team making the playoffs through the division didn't seem attainable. The Wild Card looked like the best option for the team. The 49ers have won two of their last three games and if the chips fall into place, the 49ers will essentially have control over their own playoff destiny.

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