How does the FSN NFL rooting guide work?

FSN measures how each other game in the current week changes a team’s simulated playoff, division, No. 1 seed and Super Bowl outcomes, then ranks the results that help most.

Why is my team’s own game not included?

Winning your own game is already the most direct way to improve your position. The rooting guide focuses on the other games fans should care about.

Do NFL rooting interests change every week?

Yes. Rooting interests rebuild with the FSN season forecast as standings, tiebreak paths and game probabilities change. Weekly snapshots preserve the pre-week picture.

2026 NFL · WEEK 2 · FSN-ROOT-1.0

NFL Week 2 Rooting Guide: Who Should Every Team Root For?

Pick your team for Week 2. FSN ranks every other unplayed game by how much each result helps your playoff path—using the same 5,000 full-season simulations behind the Playoff Predictor.

Playoff Control Center →Playoff Predictor →Game Simulator →

PICK YOUR TEAM

Who should you root for in Week 2?

Team

WEEK 2 ROOTING INTERESTS

San Francisco 49ers fans: here’s who to root for

Your own game is excluded. Winning that one is still the best possible rooting strategy.

Current playoff odds80.6%12 meaningful outside-game impacts

Huge impact Sun 4:25 PM ET

SEASeattle Seahawks @ ARIArizona Cardinals

ROOT FOR Arizona Cardinals over Seattle Seahawks

+6.1 pts Division odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If Arizona Cardinals wins43.9%Division odds

If Seattle Seahawks wins37.8%Division odds

Playoffs79.9%vs81.0%

Division43.9%vs37.8%

#1 seed19.0%vs19.3%

Reach SB22.1%vs22.4%

Win SB11.0%vs11.9%

High impact Sun 1:00 PM ET

MINMinnesota Vikings @ CHIChicago Bears

ROOT FOR Minnesota Vikings over Chicago Bears

+4.2 pts No. 1 seed odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If Minnesota Vikings wins21.9%No. 1 seed odds

If Chicago Bears wins17.7%No. 1 seed odds

Playoffs81.1%vs80.3%

Division40.8%vs39.6%

#1 seed21.9%vs17.7%

Reach SB24.0%vs21.3%

Win SB12.4%vs11.1%

High impact Thu 8:15 PM ET

DETDetroit Lions @ BUFBuffalo Bills

ROOT FOR Buffalo Bills over Detroit Lions

+2.9 pts No. 1 seed odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If Buffalo Bills wins20.2%No. 1 seed odds

If Detroit Lions wins17.4%No. 1 seed odds

Playoffs80.9%vs80.0%

Division40.2%vs39.8%

#1 seed20.2%vs17.4%

Reach SB22.5%vs21.7%

Win SB11.9%vs11.1%

High impact Mon 8:15 PM ET

NYGNew York Giants @ LARLos Angeles Rams

ROOT FOR New York Giants over Los Angeles Rams

+3.1 pts Division odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If New York Giants wins42.0%Division odds

If Los Angeles Rams wins38.8%Division odds

Playoffs81.0%vs80.4%

Division42.0%vs38.8%

#1 seed18.7%vs19.5%

Reach SB22.5%vs22.1%

Win SB11.5%vs11.7%

High impact Sun 1:00 PM ET

CLECleveland Browns @ TBTampa Bay Buccaneers

ROOT FOR Tampa Bay Buccaneers over Cleveland Browns

+3.4 pts Division odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If Tampa Bay Buccaneers wins41.2%Division odds

If Cleveland Browns wins37.8%Division odds

Playoffs80.2%vs81.4%

Division41.2%vs37.8%

#1 seed19.6%vs18.4%

Reach SB22.8%vs21.2%

Win SB12.1%vs10.6%

Meaningful impact Sun 1:00 PM ET

CINCincinnati Bengals @ HOUHouston Texans

ROOT FOR Cincinnati Bengals over Houston Texans

+2.1 pts Playoff odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If Cincinnati Bengals wins81.9%Playoff odds

If Houston Texans wins79.9%Playoff odds

Playoffs81.9%vs79.9%

Division40.5%vs39.8%

#1 seed18.9%vs19.4%

Reach SB23.8%vs21.4%

Win SB12.3%vs11.2%

Meaningful impact Sun 1:00 PM ET

GBGreen Bay Packers @ NYJNew York Jets

ROOT FOR Green Bay Packers over New York Jets

+1.4 pts Playoff odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If Green Bay Packers wins81.3%Playoff odds

If New York Jets wins79.8%Playoff odds

Playoffs81.3%vs79.8%

Division40.9%vs38.9%

#1 seed19.3%vs19.1%

Reach SB22.2%vs22.3%

Win SB11.5%vs11.7%

Meaningful impact Sun 1:00 PM ET

PITPittsburgh Steelers @ NENew England Patriots

ROOT FOR New England Patriots over Pittsburgh Steelers

+1.5 pts No. 1 seed odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If New England Patriots wins19.7%No. 1 seed odds

If Pittsburgh Steelers wins18.2%No. 1 seed odds

Playoffs80.7%vs80.5%

Division40.3%vs39.4%

#1 seed19.7%vs18.2%

Reach SB23.3%vs20.2%

Win SB12.3%vs10.2%

Meaningful impact small model edge Sun 4:05 PM ET

LVLas Vegas Raiders @ LACLos Angeles Chargers

ROOT FOR Los Angeles Chargers over Las Vegas Raiders

+1.2 pts Division odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If Los Angeles Chargers wins40.5%Division odds

If Las Vegas Raiders wins39.3%Division odds

Playoffs80.8%vs80.4%

Division40.5%vs39.3%

#1 seed19.3%vs19.1%

Reach SB21.8%vs23.0%

Win SB11.8%vs11.3%

Meaningful impact Sun 4:25 PM ET

WASWashington Commanders @ DALDallas Cowboys

ROOT FOR Washington Commanders over Dallas Cowboys

+2.2 pts Super Bowl trip odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If Washington Commanders wins23.5%Super Bowl trip odds

If Dallas Cowboys wins21.4%Super Bowl trip odds

Playoffs80.5%vs80.7%

Division40.1%vs40.0%

#1 seed19.4%vs19.1%

Reach SB23.5%vs21.4%

Win SB12.2%vs11.2%

Meaningful impact Sun 1:00 PM ET

CARCarolina Panthers @ ATLAtlanta Falcons

ROOT FOR Carolina Panthers over Atlanta Falcons

+1.4 pts No. 1 seed odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If Carolina Panthers wins19.8%No. 1 seed odds

If Atlanta Falcons wins18.4%No. 1 seed odds

Playoffs80.5%vs80.8%

Division40.5%vs39.4%

#1 seed19.8%vs18.4%

Reach SB21.7%vs23.0%

Win SB10.7%vs12.7%

Meaningful impact small model edge Sun 1:00 PM ET

NONew Orleans Saints @ BALBaltimore Ravens

ROOT FOR New Orleans Saints over Baltimore Ravens

+1.6 pts Super Bowl trip odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If New Orleans Saints wins23.4%Super Bowl trip odds

If Baltimore Ravens wins21.8%Super Bowl trip odds

Playoffs80.7%vs80.6%

Division40.3%vs39.9%

#1 seed18.9%vs19.3%

Reach SB23.4%vs21.8%

Win SB11.6%vs11.6%

Small edge small model edge Sun 4:05 PM ET

JAXJacksonville Jaguars @ DENDenver Broncos

ROOT FOR Denver Broncos over Jacksonville Jaguars

+1.0 pts Division odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If Denver Broncos wins40.6%Division odds

If Jacksonville Jaguars wins39.6%Division odds

Playoffs81.0%vs80.3%

Division40.6%vs39.6%

#1 seed19.6%vs19.0%

Reach SB23.1%vs21.8%

Win SB12.4%vs11.1%

Small edge small model edge Sun 8:20 PM ET

INDIndianapolis Colts @ KCKansas City Chiefs

ROOT FOR Kansas City Chiefs over Indianapolis Colts

+0.8 pts Division odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If Kansas City Chiefs wins40.3%Division odds

If Indianapolis Colts wins39.5%Division odds

Playoffs80.6%vs80.6%

Division40.3%vs39.5%

#1 seed19.5%vs18.6%

Reach SB21.9%vs22.9%

Win SB11.9%vs11.0%

Small edge small model edge Sun 1:00 PM ET

PHIPhiladelphia Eagles @ TENTennessee Titans

ROOT FOR Philadelphia Eagles over Tennessee Titans

+0.9 pts Division odds for San Francisco 49ers in the preferred-result branch

See the simulation impact

If Philadelphia Eagles wins40.3%Division odds

If Tennessee Titans wins39.4%Division odds

Playoffs80.8%vs80.2%

Division40.3%vs39.4%

#1 seed18.9%vs19.9%

Reach SB22.3%vs22.2%

Win SB11.9%vs11.0%

ALL 32 TEAMS

Top rooting interest at a glance

This server-rendered table gives every fan base’s strongest current outside-game rooting interest. Use the picker above for the full slate.

TeamRoot forAgainstImpact

WEEKLY ARCHIVE

Rooting guides change as the playoff picture changes

Saved weekly checkpoints let fans revisit what helped their team at that point in the season.

Week 1 →Week 2 →Week 3 →Week 4 →Week 5 →Week 6 →

WHY THIS IS DIFFERENT

It measures the impact instead of guessing at rooting interests

For each unplayed Week 2 game, FSN looks at the season simulations where the away team won and the simulations where the home team won. Then it compares what happened to every other team’s playoff path.

The ranking gives playoff qualification the most weight for bubble teams. For strong contenders, division and No. 1 seed leverage becomes more important. Super Bowl paths remain a smaller secondary signal so the guide does not tell a 5–8 team to root for an exotic championship path instead of the result that actually helps it reach January.

Because these are Monte Carlo estimates, very small differences can move from refresh to refresh. FSN explicitly labels those as small or minimal rather than pretending a tenth of a percentage point is destiny.

FAQ

NFL rooting interests, explained

Why isn’t my team’s own game listed?

Because winning your own game is already the strongest direct way to improve your position. This tool answers the harder question: what should you want to happen everywhere else?

Does “+4.7 points” mean the result guarantees my playoff odds rise by exactly 4.7 points?

No. It is the difference between two conditional Monte Carlo branches in the current forecast. It is a useful estimate of leverage, not a guaranteed future update.

Will the rooting guide update after games are played?

Yes. The live guide follows the current unplayed slate. Weekly archive pages preserve the checkpoint from that week so later results do not rewrite what fans were supposed to root for beforehand.