The Seattle Seahawks did not give many reasons for the 12th Man to be thankful this Turkey Day. In the first ever Thanksgiving game hosted at Lumen Field, the Seahawks were blown out 31-13 to the visiting San Francisco 49ers. It was the second meeting between these teams on Thanksgiving – the first since 2014 – with both winning in each other’s building.
It was an outright clinic put on by the 49ers to start the game. A quick, nine-play 71-yard drive put San Francisco ahead 7-0. But a 66-yard kick return put the Seahawks deep in 49ers territory, giving the eager 12’s hope for an exciting evening. Seattle managed to gain only one yard, and had to settle for a field goal. Little did we know it would be the Seahawks’ only highlight of the half.
By halftime, San Francisco was in full control of the game, having outgained Seattle 225-56. Making things worse, 41 of those yards for the Seahawks came on the final drive of the first half, which resulted in a missed field goal.
Momentum seemingly shifted in favor of Seattle in the third quarter, as Jordan Brooks finally got the Seahawks in the endzone with a pick-six. A quick punt from the 49ers gave Seattle the ball back, and they started marching. It felt as if the Seahawks might be engineering a comeback as they made it all the way to San Francisco’s seven-yard line.
But a blatantly missed interference call on Jaxon Smith-Njigba on second down, then a sack on third-and-goal doomed Seattle’s chances. The Seahawks had to settle for a field goal, which turned out to be their final points of the night. Any momentum they earned in the third quarter started slipping away from there.
The 49ers slammed the door shut on any fleeting hope of a comeback when Brock Purdy connected with Brandon Aiyuk for a 28-yard touchdown to go up 31-13 with 7:59 left in the game.
The Seahawks now fall to 6-5 on the year, while San Francisco was able to further extend their lead in the NFC West. The 49ers have now won four-straight games against Seattle, which ties a franchise record for longest win streak against the Seahawks all time. They will have a chance to make a new record in two weeks, when the Seahawks travel to the Bay Area for the rematch.
As for Seattle, they have now dropped two in a row. The road ahead does not get any easier, as they must now travel to Dallas to play the red hot Cowboys, who decimated the Washington Commanders 45-10 earlier today.