Brock Purdy and Christian McCaffrey have big night against Colts

INDIANAPOLIS – The San Francisco 49ers’ long wait before Monday night’s game against the Indianapolis Colts was made much easier when the Pittsburgh Steelers eliminated the Detroit Lions on Sunday night to secure the Niners’ spot in the NFC playoffs.

Lest the Niners seem content with simply punching their ticket to the dance, they stomped on the Colts on Monday with much loftier goals in mind. At 11-4 and aided by the Seattle Seahawks’ win over the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night, the 49ers now have a direct line to the NFC’s top seed.

This path doesn’t take much explanation: If the 49ers win their next two games — home games against the Chicago Bears and Seahawks — they will win the NFC West division and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

Plus, Super Bowl LX will be played at Levi’s Stadium, so if the Niners can secure the top seed, they won’t need to fly again this season.

Of course, the Niners will face much tougher tests against the Bears and Seahawks than against Indianapolis. But if the offense can recover and keep rolling — the Niners haven’t punted in over 133 minutes of play — they’ll have a chance to find themselves in a sweet spot heading into the playoffs.

Here’s what to know about both teams after the 49ers beat the Colts on Monday night:

Turning point: In a game that seemed destined to be a shootout from the first two drives, the Niners, who had the ball on second down, got the first point of the night midway through the first quarter to take their first lead.

With 7:14 left in the first quarter, Colts returner Ameer Abdullah received the kickoff and cut inside as Niners safety Ji’Ayir Brown remained under control and redirected to Abdullah. Brown reached and released the ball, and tight end Jake Tonges recovered at the Indianapolis 26. Five plays later, the Niners scored again to take a 14-7 lead.

What to think of the QB’s performance: “Monday Night Football” hasn’t been kind to quarterback Brock Purdy, as he’s thrown five touchdowns and 11 interceptions in his five appearances prior to this game.

But Purdy shrugged off those woes against a depleted Colts secondary, recording his first career five-touchdown game. He is the first Niners quarterback to throw for five scores on MNF and the first team signal-caller to throw for five or more touchdowns in a regular season or playoff game since Steve Young in Super Bowl XXIX against the Chargers.

Purdy finished 25 of 34 for 295 yards with one interception.

Most surprising performance: The 49ers’ running game has struggled to gain traction all season, and Monday didn’t seem like the most likely time for that to change against a Colts defense that entered tied for second in yards per carry allowed (3.8).

But San Francisco’s offensive line rose to the occasion, with running back Christian McCaffrey producing his second-best rushing effort of the season. The Niners finished with 145 yards on 31 carries.

McCaffrey, who rushed for 117 yards on 21 carries, surpassed 1,000 rushing yards for the season, the fifth time he has done so in his career. -Nick Wagoner

Next game: vs. Chicago Bears (8:20 p.m. ET, Sunday)

The Colts’ high hopes earlier this season have all but fizzled. Indianapolis reached the point of being eliminated in the playoffs with Monday night’s loss; his playoff chances are now estimated at 2%, according to ESPN Analytics.

The Colts brought in 44-year-old quarterback Philip Rivers to help hold their offense together following Daniel Jones’ season-ending Achilles injury. But it turned out that other aspects of the team couldn’t keep up with Rivers at center. While Rivers held on, the Colts defense had its most miserable performance of the season. Indianapolis needs to think about what another offseason could look like.

Biggest hole in the game plan: The Colts opted to use a four-man pass rush while often leaving their inexperienced and overmatched cornerbacks in man coverage against the 49ers receivers. It worked as well as expected, with Purdy splitting the secondary for five touchdown passes. The combination of a limited pass rush and inconsistent coverage allowed the 49ers to drive the ball at will.

What to think of the QB’s performance: To say Rivers played close to the vest last week in his first game in five years is an understatement. But on Monday night, he opened things up in a big way, pushing the ball further downfield after averaging just 4.4 yards per attempt in his previous game. Rivers completed 23 of 35 passes for 277 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.

Trend to watch: The Colts have had some ugly late-season collapses in recent seasons, and this year’s is poised to become one of the worst. After starting 2025 at 8-2 and in the title contender conversation, Indianapolis has now lost five games in a row and appears destined to miss the playoffs again.

This continues a trend of late-season opportunities in 2021, 2023 and 2024, where the Colts were alive for the playoffs in late December, but failed to reach the postseason in each case. This year’s shortcomings are largely due to injuries, but the trend is nonetheless boring. –Stephen Holder

Next game: vs. the Jacksonville Jaguars (1 p.m. ET, Sunday)