The identity of the top two teams in the NFL power rankings after Week 12 should be no surprise.

It is just the order in which they stand with which the San Francisco 49ers will have dispute.

The Niners, having cruised to a Thanksgiving victory over the Seattle Seahawks that saw them move into the second seed in the NFC at 8-3, remain in second place in Sports Illustrated's latest power rankings.

However, they have a clear opportunity to leap to the top and, more importantly, move within one game of the Philadelphia Eagles, who stand at number one in the power rankings, in the race for the one seed in the NFC.

San Francisco faces Philadelphia in a rematch of last season's NFC Championship Game, and the 49ers enter that massive contest as three-point favorites despite the Eagles being 10-1 after wins over the Kansas City Chiefs and the Buffalo Bills in the last two weeks.

Should the 49ers vindicate that surprising status, they will undoubtedly be viewed as the premier team in the NFL.

For now, though, SI's Conor Orr writes of the Niners:

As predicted, the 49ers’ three-game losing streak is now a distant memory. Also, as predicted, the 49ers seem forged by their little detour into substandard play. Christian McCaffrey had more than 100 rushing yards in the first half against their next-closest division rival, and San Francisco had a 21-point halftime lead. I would say that qualifies as being “back.”

The 49ers are indeed 'back', and, if they deal the Eagles their second loss, a losing run that once looked troubling will be written off as a blip for a team that may well become the consensus favorites to win the Super Bowl with victory at Lincoln Financial Field.

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