Why this Week will Define the 49ers Season

This is the most important mid-November regular season game I can remember.

It's not a must win, but it's as close to one as you can get at this time of the year. The 49ers have lost three games in a row and are coming off a bye week. If they lose again this week to the Jaguars, they'll have to face some extremely hard questions.

Are they melting down? Do they have to fire their defensive coordinator? Should they bench their starting quarterback? Is Kyle Shanahan a product of assistant coaches who have left the organization? Will the 49ers make the playoffs? Should they not have given contract extensions to Shanahan and John Lynch after Week 3?

It's not a given that the 49ers will win on Sunday. They have to travel across the country and play a game that starts at 10:00 a.m. Pacific -- never easy for a West Coast team. They also have to face a Jaguars team that has won five games in a row and most likely will be in the playoffs. This is a legitimate test for the 49ers. Jacksonville has an elite run defense that can shut down Christian McCaffrey and put the game in Brock Purdy's hands. Plus they have an elite quarterback in Trevor Lawrence who gets the ball out of his hands quickly and shreds zone coverage, which the 49ers play a ton of.

So if the 49ers find a way to win, even by one point, that would be a big deal. It wouldn't mean the 49ers suddenly are Super Bowl favorites, but it would make them 6-3. That's an elite record. And you could say they faced adversity, made adjustments and improved. That would be the sign of a Championship team.

The 49ers will define themselves this Sunday in Jacksonville.