Even though the San Francisco 49ers are one of the NFL's three currently winless teams and mired in last place in the NFC West, owner and president Jed York predicted they are going to bounce back in historic fashion.
"We're going to win the division," York predicted Monday morning in a text to ESPN.
The 49ers fell to 0-5 after losing 27-24 at home to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday night.
If the 49ers do win the division, they will make history. Under the NFL's current playoff format adopted in 1990, no team ever has opened the season 0-5 and reached the playoffs, no less won its division. If the 49ers are going to reverse the trend, they need to start doing it Sunday against Oakland, which is 2-3 after ending a 13-game losing streak against the San Diego Chargers.
But consider that the 49ers have played only one divisional game, at Seattle in the opener, and still have five more games left against the NFC West teams they are trying to bypass. Arizona is in first place in the division with a 3-2 record, Seattle is 2-2 and St. Louis is 2-3.
Plus, in the weakest division in football, the 49ers' schedule in the final 11 games is not exactly daunting.
San Francisco hosts Oakland, plays at Carolina, plays Denver in London, has a bye, hosts St. Louis and Tampa Bay, travels to Arizona for a Monday night game and then plays at Green Bay, returns home for Seattle, plays at San Diego and at St. Louis, and finishes the season at home against Arizona.
Adam Schefter is ESPN's NFL Insider.