When this rematch of last year’s NFC Championship between the Detroit Lions and San Francisco 49ers was announced during the offseason, it seemed destined to have playoff implications. While the Lions exceed most preseason expectations, at 13-2, the results of Monday Night Football will have little to no impact on their playoff fate—that’ll have to wait for Week 18 Sunday Night Football against the Minnesota Vikings. On the other end, the 49ers' are already eliminated from the postseason, so they also have little to play for beyond pride.
Despite the lack of playoff ramifications, coach Dan Campbell already told the media on Monday last week that “we’re bringing everything we’ve got into this game” so the expectation is that the Lions will be out of their cage looking to tear apart the gold prospectors at Levi’s Stadium.