SportStrata Stories · NFL Week 7
The 49ers have a plus-58 point differential, the best in the NFL
San Francisco is 6-1 and has outscored opponents 197-139, leading Minnesota's plus-51 differential by 7.
The news: Colts trade DeForest Buckner to the 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers have outscored their opponents 197-139 through Week 7, a plus-58 differential that leads the NFL's 32 teams, per ESPN's standings. Minnesota is next at plus-51, and Jacksonville at plus-50.
Game by game
- Week 1: won 27-7 at Los Angeles Rams
- Week 2: won 35-13 vs Miami
- Week 3: won 36-30 vs Arizona
- Week 4: won 24-14 vs Denver
- Week 5: won 32-29 at Seattle
- Week 6: won 23-17 vs Washington
- Week 7: lost 20-29 at Atlanta
Where the margin comes from
San Francisco scores 28.1 points per game and allows 19.9, against a league average of 23.2. The 6 wins came by 20, 22, 6, 10, 3, and 6 points, and the only loss came by 9.
Not just a soft schedule
The skeptic's case is the schedule: San Francisco's 7 opponents are a combined 19-27. But Minnesota, next at plus-51, faced opponents a combined 16-25, a softer slate than San Francisco's.
The caveat
The caveat: 7 games is 7 games. San Francisco's only loss came in Week 7, and the lead over Minnesota is 7 points, so 1 game can erase it.
Written with AI assistance from SportStrata's own data; every number above is listed with its source in this story's data file. See the data behind this story.