Location: Lumen Field | Seattle, WA
TV: FOX
Radio: KSAN 107.7 FM | Seattle Sports 710 AM| KIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM | SiriusXM 195, 264, XM App
Odds: Seahawks -3 | O/U: 45.5
This will be the 58th meeting between the two divisional opponents and the 31st in Seattle. The Seahawks have won 18 of their 30 home matchups against San Francisco. Since 2020, however, the teams have met 14 times, with each team winning seven. Seattle won two of the last three meetings, including last season’s Divisional Round. Despite that playoff loss, the 49ers have won four consecutive regular-season road games in Seattle, with their last regular-season loss coming in 2021.
49ers Look To Maintain Offensive Momentum Despite Injuries
The 49ers have been short-handed offensively since the season began. Wide receiver Ricky Pearsall suffered a season-ending injury before the season began, and wide receiver Christian Kirk has missed the first four games after being placed on injured reserve with a calf injury. The injuries haven’t stopped there: De’Zhaun Stribling and Demarcus Robinson also got hurt in the first four weeks, leaving the 49ers with a depleted wide receiver room. Despite the injuries, San Francisco has been one of the NFL’s best offenses thanks to Purdy’s MVP-level play.
Over the first four weeks, Purdy has been one of the league’s best quarterbacks, throwing 11 touchdowns and posting an 89.2 passer rating, the best in the NFL. A big reason for his success has been the offensive line; he is the only quarterback not sacked this season, and the first since Peyton Manning in 2005 to go four games without a sack. During Wednesday’s press conference, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan discussed the factors behind Purdy’s impressive start to the season.
“I think Brock [Purdy] has a real, really good natural instinct on running and making plays. I mean, he did a lot in college,” Shanahan said. “I just think the goal for a quarterback is the balance of when and when not to. It’s hard to be a good quarterback if anytime something flashes, you just run. It can close up pretty quick. He’s proven to have a real good feel for it.”
McCaffrey also expressed confidence in Purdy, highlighting the importance of his continued development. However, Purdy and the 49ers offense will face their toughest test of the season as they take on a Seahawks defense that didn’t allow them to score a touchdown in their last matchup and has 11 sacks this season. For that reason, McCaffrey stressed the importance of focusing on what’s ahead and not dwelling on last year’s Divisional Round.
“Right now, it’s just about this game we have right now, showing up each week and upping our standard how we play,” McCaffrey said. “Going out there and executing and being really in on the details is super important this week. All of the little stuff, the extra stuff that can get you another two, three yards on any given play is super important.”
Shanahan praised the Seahawks’ defense, saying they are very aggressive and, when they are, rarely irresponsible. He said he spent time during the offseason and throughout the week studying ways to attack the Seahawks’ defense. McCaffrey echoed that sentiment, saying Seattle’s defense plays together as one.
With this matchup serving as a critical divisional showdown in a hostile environment, the players know execution could be the difference between winning and losing. With the 49ers’ defense short-handed without Nick Bosa, the offense will once again be pressured to sustain production. Purdy and the offense must maintain their momentum from the last four weeks to secure a critical divisional win over the defending Super Bowl champions.
Seattle Seahawks Focus on Defensive Improvements Ahead of 49ers Matchup
The Seahawks’ defense was a major reason for its success last season, ranking as the NFL’s best total defense. After the first two weeks, it looked poised to be one of the best again, forcing four turnovers and limiting opponents to 17 points. However, the defense hasn’t met its standards in the last two games, allowing 50 points.
On top of their defensive struggles, the unit has dealt with discipline issues, with 35 total accepted penalties and a high penalty-yardage total. Six of these penalties came at bad times, as the team ranks second in the league in third-down penalties that extend opponent drives. Five of these have led to points for the opponent, and four have led to touchdowns. In their last game against the Chargers, Seattle set a franchise single-game record with 150 penalty yards on 14 accepted penalties. With a divisional matchup against the 49ers approaching, defensive tackle Jarran Reed confirmed during Wednesday’s press conference that the defense held a players-only meeting to address its performance against the Chargers.
“We just had a real meeting with each other, real honest meeting with each other about, you know, what we expect, what we want to go through,” Reed said. “We hit it head-on because that was way too many penalties for us as a team, especially like the personal penalties. It wasn’t like a panic moment, but it was like a moment of realization that, you know, in the course of the game, we can’t do that.”
Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald knows that his defense needs to play better ahead of Sunday’s divisional matchup. In the last two matchups against San Francisco, the defense has allowed only nine points combined while forcing four turnovers. This time, Seattle will face a much stronger 49ers’ offense that has been explosive despite injuries and a depleted wide receiver room. Macdonald hopes his defense can replicate its success from those previous games, particularly in containing Purdy.
“[Purdy] throws on time, and then when it’s not there, he’s very creative in how he extends plays and makes plays. It’s kind of not a one-man job for us. It’s an 11- or 12-man job,” Macdonald said. “We tackled really well. We limited like kind of extra yardage really well. I thought we rushed the quarterback with discipline and married the coverage. That’s what it takes to play just really good football in general.”
Reed talked about the importance of pressuring Purdy, saying the defense can’t give him any rushing lanes to escape the pocket. He also stressed that everyone has to communicate and stay on the same page throughout the game. As for Macdonald, he praised San Francisco’s offensive efficiency, which has averaged 30.5 points per game, noting that the team’s pass protection has kept them out of many third-down situations and highlighting how playmakers like McCaffrey and wide receiver Mike Evans will test Seattle’s defense.
The Seahawks will need a complete team effort to tie the 49ers in the NFC West standings. The defense has struggled lately, and the offense also needs to improve, as it ranks outside the top 10 in total offense. It might be early in the season, but every divisional game matters. A home loss to San Francisco could make it harder for them to defend their NFC West title, raising the stakes for both teams heading into the matchup.
Prediction
49ers 20, Seahawks 24
Main Image: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images
