The 49ers put Tennessee away, then let the Titans back in for a 37-24 win that featured efficient offense and concerning defense. Brock Purdy and Ricky Pearsall

Two defensive stars were lost for the season. Their QB missed multiple games. Still, here are the 49ers are, a game out of the No. 1 seed.

A 10-4 record keeps the 49ers in the thick of a wild NFC playoff race and moved their win streak to four games. The Titans figure to end the year with one of the worst records in the NFL, so Sunday's game wasn't a great indicator of where the 49ers stand in the NFL hierarchy. However, it did provide plenty to learn and take away.

The San Francisco 49ers were expected to beat the Tennessee Titans, and they were expected to do it by about two scores. Brock Purdy was expected to have a big day and if he did not, there would have been major questions.

A playoff spot is within reach for the San Francisco 49ers if they take care of business vs. the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.

Brock Purdy’s 26-yard run is strangely the 49ers’ longest among 404 carries this peculiarly successful season.

With a wide-open NFL this year, the 49ers have an opportunity to enter the playoffs hot and make a run.

Lions win final three games and Packers lose at least two of their final three games. The Lions currently trail the 49ers by two games, and the Lions can’t win the tiebreaker. San Francisco is 8-2 against the NFC, and the Lions can only get to 7-5. So if these two teams finish with the same record, the Lions will lose the tiebreaker.

SANTA CLARA — Christian McCaffrey will continue his two-pronged assault on a 49ers’ playoff berth as well as his quest to become the first player in NFL history to have two separate seasons of 1,000 yards rushing and receiving.