49ers now second-favorites to win Super Bowl 54 in SportsLine NFL futures simulations
The San Francisco 49ers are the NFC's only unbeaten and they are finally getting some love from SportsLine's Projection Model.
For the first time since 1990, the San Francisco 49ers are 7-0. The Niners haven't been as dominant as the fellow unbeaten New England Patriots but not that far off. San Francisco has won every game but one this season by at least nine points and just destroyed a good Carolina Panthers team on Sunday 51-13.
The SportsLine Projection Model has finally gotten on the 49ers' bandwagon a bit as their simulated percentage to win Super Bowl LIV jumped from 14.9 percent to 19.1 percent this week. They are also projected to finish as the NFC's top seed with 13 victories, just ahead of the New Orleans Saints, who are at 12.9 wins.
Yet while the Saints have a slightly lower simulation percentage of winning the Super Bowl at 18.75, New Orleans' chances of winning the NFC are 35.4 percent, slightly ahead of San Francisco's 34.7 percent. The 49ers do visit the Big Easy in Week 14. This week, the Niners are nearly double-digit favorites on the NFL odds Thursday at Arizona, while the Saints are on the bye.
With one of the best point differentials in NFL history through eight games, the Patriots remain the clear Super Bowl favorites with a simulation percentage of 32.1 percent. That actually shrunk from 33.6 percent last week simply because the SportsLine Projection Model is liking the 49ers and Saints better and better.
Likely the biggest injury news to a playoff contender from Week 8 was the season-ending torn pectoral muscle suffered by Houston end and three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt. While the Texans did beat Oakland despite losing Watt, Houston's chances of winning the AFC dropped from 5.4 percent to 4.5 percent due to Watt's season being over.
The Cleveland Browns are a massive disappointment at 2-5 but are still given an 18.2 percent of making the playoffs simply because their remaining schedule is so easy. The Browns are field-goal favorites this week in Denver.
