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NFL power rankings: 2019 edition – Patriots finish on top, again

By Russell S. Baxter

ATLANTA, GA - FEBRUARY 03: Julian Edelman #11 of the New England Patriots and teammate Tom Brady #12 celebrate at the end of the Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on February 3, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. The New England Patriots defeat the Los Angeles Rams 13-3. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - FEBRUARY 03: Julian Edelman #11 of the New England Patriots and teammate Tom Brady #12 celebrate at the end of the Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on February 3, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. The New England Patriots defeat the Los Angeles Rams 13-3. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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LOS ANGELES, CA – DECEMBER 30: George Kittle #85 of the San Francisco 49ers runs after making a reception during the game against the Los Angeles Rams at the LA Memorial Coliseum on December 30, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. The Rams defeated the 49ers 48-32. (Photo by Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA – DECEMBER 30: George Kittle #85 of the San Francisco 49ers runs after making a reception during the game against the Los Angeles Rams at the LA Memorial Coliseum on December 30, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. The Rams defeated the 49ers 48-32. (Photo by Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty Images) /

28. San Francisco 49ers (4-12)

3rd Place, NFC West

Season Review: Given the fact that the team had won its final five games in 2017, there was a lot of optimism surrounding the Niners in Kyle Shanahan’s second season. But quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo was lost in Week 3 and the 49ers wound up using three different starting signal-callers by year’s end. On the other side of the ball, San Francisco’s defense did little to help the team’s cause, setting dubious NFL records for fewest interceptions (2) and fewest takeaways (7) in an NFL season. But one big bright spot was George Kittle, who set a league record for receiving yards by a tight end (1,377) in a season.

2018 Turning Point: It’s somewhat easy to pinpoint exactly when things really began to go wrong. In that Week 3 loss at Arrowhead Stadium to the Chiefs, Garoppolo went down with a knee injury late in the contest and was lost for the rest of the season. It was the beginning of a six-game losing streak.

2019 Priorities: The club could use some play-makers on both sides of the football, in particular at wide receiver and most notably at linebacker and the secondary. The 49ers have close to $60 million in cap room to play with and could be quite aggressive during free agency.

Next: No. 27

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