Must win for 49ers against Rams?

SAN FRANCISCO -- The 49ers can finish the job of winning the NFC West on Sunday against the lowly St. Louis Rams.But they will still have a lot of work to accomplish before the playoffs begin."There's a lot of football left, a lot of opportunities for us to get better," 49ers guard Adam Snyder said. "It would benefit us more to focus on that, rather than getting into the playoffs. I'm sure if we win, I'll celebrate a little. But you celebrate every win."There could be twice the reasons for 49ers running back Frank Gore to celebrate. He is just 22 yards away from surpassing Joe "The Jet" Perry on the official 49ers rushing list.RELATED: Gore on brink of franchise record
"The bigger picture is us winning the game and doing something we've haven't done in a while, and that's getting to the playoffs," Gore said."But I'd be happy if I do it this week. It would be a blessing. I would like to do it in front of the fans, who have been with us for a while and been behind us 100 percent. It would be a time to win and get the record. That would be great."In a lot of ways, this might be a must-win game for the 49ers because of the NFC playoff race. After all, the 49ers are currently in command of the No. 2 seed with a 9-2 record. The game against the Rams at Candlestick would appear to be their easiest remaining game. (The 49ers are 13-point favorites.)The 49ers finish the season at Arizona (Dec. 11), at home in a Monday night game against Pittsburgh (Dec. 19), and with road games at Seattle (Dec. 24) and St. Louis (Jan. 1).It seems unlikely the 49ers (9-2) can catch the Green Bay Packers (11-0) for the top seed and home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs. But the 49ers, essentially, have a two-game lead over the New Orleans Saints and Dallas Cowboys for the No. 2 spot, which includes a first-round bye and a home game in the divisional round of the playoffs.The 49ers own a one-game lead over the Saints (8-3), but the 49ers would win any tie-breaker based on a better record within the conference. The 49ers have a two-game lead over the Cowboys, but the Cowboys would win a tie-breaker based on their head-to-head overtime victory against the 49ers in Week 2.If the 49ers were to slip to the No. 3 slot in the playoffs, they would still get a home playoff game in the wild-card round. But if the 49ers win that game, they would be forced to play on the road in the divisional round.Today's key games
St. Louis at 49ers, 1:15 p.m.
Green Bay at N.Y. Giants, 1:15 p.m.
Dallas at Arizona, 1:15 p.m.
Detroit at New Orleans, 5:20 p.m.Here is a look at the complete NFC playoff picture (entering Sunday's games):Division leaders
1. Green Bay (North) 11-0. (NFC record: 9-0)
2. 49ers (West) 9-2. (NFC record: 7-1)
3. New Orleans (South) 8-3. (NFC record: 5-3)
4. Dallas (East) 7-4. (NFC record: 5-2)Wild card
5. Chicago (North) 7-4. (NFC record: 6-3)
6. Atlanta (South) 7-4. (NFC record: 5-4)
Next in line
7. Detroit (North) 7-4. (NFC record: 5-4)8. N.Y. Giants (East) 6-5. (NFC record: 3-5)
9. Seattle (West) 5-7. (NFC record: 4-4)
10. Washington (East) 4-7. (NFC record: 4-5)
11. Arizona (West) 4-7. (NFC record: 4-5)
12. Tampa Bay (South) 4-7. (NFC record: 3-5)
13. Philadelphia (East) 4-8. (NFC record: 4-6)
14. Carolina (South) 3-8. (NFC record: 1-7)
15. Minnesota (North) 2-9. (NFC record: 2-6)
16. St. Louis (West) 2-9. (NFC record: 1-8)Tie-breakers
Head-to-head, if applicable.
Best won-lost-tied percentage in games played within the conference.
Best won-lost-tied percentage in common games, minimum of four.
Strength of victory.
Strength of schedule.