After winning on opening night against the rival Los Angeles Rams, it's been all downhill for the San Francisco 49ers.

The once-proud franchise has lost its last 13 games. They're weak defensively and their passing game is anemic. If it wasn't for Carlos Hyde and the running game, their wouldn't be a positive for S.F. to hang their hat on.

Injuries have certainly plagued the Niners, but only managing one win is embarrassing for Chip Kelly in his first season by the Bay. They don't have anything to play for over the final two weeks of the season, except self-preservation and pride.

If San Francisco loses out, they'll clinch at least the number two pick in the upcoming NFL draft. But, the players have one big reason to not let that happen; they don't want to be remembered as the worst 49ers team ever.

Franchise record for ineptitude

They already set a franchise-record with 13 straight losses. If they lose in Los Angeles on Christmas Eve, they'll tie another infamous record: most losses in Niners history (14). The other teams to do it were the 1978, 1979, and 2004 renditions of the scarlet and gold.

If they lose Saturday and then again in Week 17, they'll hold the dubious spot all by themselves.

Kelly addressed the dire situation on Monday, stating that it's hard for the players to remain motivated given their record.

From the Associated Press:

“I don't think it's the time right now where we sit down and look at it and say, `All right. Let's evaluate from a 50,000 foot above, take a look at the entire season,” coach Chip Kelly said Monday. “We'll have time to do that once the season's ended. Right now, we're just really on a week-to-week deal.”

“It can get difficult for them,” Kelly said of his players. “They're human. Everybody can kind of, when you start to look at it and say, `Hey, it's not going the way we want to get it going.' But, the one thing I don't think they do, I don't think they blame others.

“I think they take responsibility. Everybody does. We're not looking to blame people. We're looking to try and find solutions in terms of moving forward to rectify the situation.”

Not making excuses

To his credit, Kelly didn't blame injuries for the Niners' struggles:

“Part of being really good in this league is staying healthy and when you can stay healthy and you're playing with your front-line guys then you've got a shot,” Kelly said.

“If not, everybody, no matter where you are, I don't think there's a team in the league right now that says, `Hey we're good. We haven't sustained any injuries.' Everybody's sustained something to some extent. You just have to be able to deal with them.”