Tag: 49ers vs Seahawks

WATCH: Raheem Mostert puts 49ers ahead 26-14 with 2nd TD

Raheem Mostert continued his scoring spree with two touchdowns Sunday night.

The 49ers offense needed another response to a Seattle touchdown, and they got it behind a seven-play, 75-yard drive that Raheem Mostert capped with his second touchdown of the night.

The drive was extended on a third-and-5 when Jimmy Garoppolo hit Deebo Samuel for 21 yards. Matt Breida had a couple big runs on the drive, but Mostert has been the star of the rushing attack. He has 54 yards on nine carries with two touchdowns.

WATCH: Raheem Mostert plows in for 49ers touchdown

The 49ers answered the Seahawks’ score in a big way thanks to Raheem Mostert.

The 49ers needed a big-time response after a Seahawks’ touchdown made it a 13-7 game. San Francisco answered with a five-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a Raheem Mostert two-yard touchdown run.

Mostert has touchdowns in six consecutive games. Kyle Juszczyk had the big play in the drive when he reeled in a 49-yard catch. Deebo Samuel also had a big catch on a slant that put the 49ers inside the Seattle 5.

WATCH: 49ers stuff Marshawn Lynch on 4th-and-inches

The 49ers didn’t let Marshawn Lynch come up with a big play late in the first half.

The 49ers defense bent late in the first half, but they didn’t break on a fourth-and-inches from their own 31. Seattle ran a handoff to Marshawn Lynch into the middle of the line, but Nick Bosa flew off the edge to stuff the veteran running back for no gain.

Lynch hasn’t been effective in his return. He has seven yards on four carries.

WATCH: DeForest Buckner sacks Russell Wilson to force punt

DeForest Buckner came up with his first sack since Week 14 to end a Seahawks drive.

The 49ers defense is all over the place Sunday night in Seattle. They came up with a huge stop on third-and-2 after a 49ers touchdown. The Seahawks started to find some room against San Francisco, but DeForest Buckner blew through the line for a huge sack to force a punt.

That’s sack No. 7.5 for Buckner, and his first since the Baltimore game in Week 14.

49ers final playoff scenarios heading into showdown with Seahawks

The 49ers know exactly what’s at stake in their Week 17 game vs. the Seahawks.

The 49ers and Seahawks will play the final regular-season game of the decade Sunday night, and the rest of the action wrapping up across the NFL means their playoff fates are officially set.

Here’s what the 49ers are facing with a win, loss or tie in Seattle:

A 49ers win means…

A win means an NFC West title and the No. 1 seed in the NFC for San Francisco. They’d get a first-round bye and hold home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. This didn’t change with Sunday’s games.

What did change was their second-round matchup. San Francisco’s first playoff game would be in the divisional round at home against the lowest-remaining seed. That means they’d host the Vikings, Seahawks or Eagles.

A 49ers loss means…

A loss means the 49ers finish second in the NFC West and grab the No. 5 seed in the NFC. Since the Eagles beat Dallas in Week 16, and downed the Giants 34-17 in Week 17, they earned the NFC East title and the No. 4 seed. The 49ers would travel to Philadelphia on wild card weekend. If they win that game, they’d either head to Green Bay or New Orleans in the divisional round depending on how the other games shake out.

A 49ers-Seahawks tie means…

A tie means the 49ers win the NFC West, but earn the No. 3 seed in the NFC. The third-place team doesn’t get a first-round bye, but they do get a home game on wild card weekend. In the event of a tie, San Francisco would host Minnesota at Levi’s Stadium in the wild card game. A win there would send them to New Orleans for the second round.

Beating Seahawks important for 49ers in more ways than one

The 49ers can pick up a huge symbolic victory if they knock off the Seahawks in Seattle.

The 49ers’ Week 17 showdown with the Seahawks doesn’t need any added drama. It’s a do-or-die situation with the NFC West title on the line for both clubs. For San Francisco, the No. 1 seed in the NFC is also at stake. There’s an added layer for the 49ers though that isn’t going to show up in any standings table or any box score.

Ever since the Seahawks laid a 42-13 beatdown on the 49ers in Week 16 of the 2012 season, CenturyLink Field has represented something of a dark cloud over the 49ers. They’re 0-8 there since 2012, including the loss in the 2014 NFC Championship that effectively ended the 49ers’ three-year run of success in the early part of the 2010s.

Richard Sherman tipped Colin Kaepernick’s pass intended for Michael Crabtree into the waiting arms of Malcolm Smith. Seattle went to the Super Bowl and blew out the Broncos. They went again the next year and nearly knocked off the Patriots. They’ve only missed the playoffs once since 2012.

Meanwhile, the 49ers have gone the other direction. They haven’t made the playoffs since the 2014 NFC title game, and they won just 25 games between the 2014 and 2018 seasons.

None of those 25 wins came in Seattle because the 49ers’ biggest rival continued trending up while the 49ers slid to the dregs of NFL irrelevance. Trips to the Pacific Northwest were a consistent reminder of what San Francisco used to be, then the Seahawks would win handily and offer another reminder of where the 49ers stood in the NFL hierarchy.

In the seven regular season games since San Francisco’s last win in Seattle, a 19-17 win over Tarvaris Jackson on Christmas Eve, the Seahawks are 7-0 and have outscored the 49ers by 130 points. The 49ers didn’t eclipse the 18-point mark in any of those games, and they averaged just 11.3 points per game.

It’s been a house of horrors that’s stayed hanging over the franchise, and continued to do so even as the 49ers cruised to an 8-0 start this season. The Seahawks won the first meeting between the two clubs this year at Levi’s Stadium 27-24 in overtime, and suddenly the Week 17 showdown in Seattle loomed over the rest of the year.

They stayed in lockstep with the 49ers in the standings, and stayed above them in the standings thanks to their head-to-head tiebreaker. San Francisco finally gained separation in Week 16, just in time to go play at CenturyLink Field to close the season.

Surely the team will view this as a regular Week 17 game with playoff implications. There’s more to it than that though. Knocking off the Seahawks on the road would be the final box for head coach Kyle Shanahan and this new era of 49ers football to check. They can regain NFC West supremacy and finally get rid of the state of Washington sized monkey on the franchise’s back.

The good news for the 49ers is that they should win. They’re the better, and believe it or not, healthier team going into the final week. Their narrow loss earlier in the year came without star tight end George Kittle, and the defense was still learning to navigate without Kwon Alexander in the middle. The offense also lost wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders for the entire second half. Sanders has proven paramount to the offensive 49ers’ success since his arrival in Week 8.

All signs point to the 49ers being in prime position to beat the Seahawks and earn the NFC West title along with the NFC’s No. 1 seed. It would also provide validation in the final game of the decade that the cloud that hung over the 49ers for most of the last 10 years can officially dissipate, and San Francisco can go into the postseason on the highest note the team has been on since 2011.

Behind Enemy Lines: 49ers-Seahawks preview with Seahawks Wire

From Marshawn Lynch to Russell Wilson to Bobby Wagner, we covered it all in a three-question 49ers-Seahawks preview with Seahawks Wire.

The 49ers’ biggest regular-season game since 2013 will go down Sunday in Seattle – a place they haven’t won since the 2011 season.

Seattle’s place in the 49ers’ history throughout the 2010s is well-documented. They’ve been a thorn in San Francisco’s side for a better part of the decade, but going into Week 17 of the final game of the 2010s, Seattle looks as beatable as they’ve looked since 2011.

To get a gauge on where the 49ers’ biggest rival is at going into the final week, we got in touch with Seahawks Wire managing editor Liz Mathews. She answered a few questions for us heading into Sunday’s showdown:

Niners Wire: What kind of workload do you foresee for Marshawn Lynch on Sunday?

Liz Mathews: Coach Pete Carroll said Lynch would definitely “contribute,” however it’s rookie Travis Homer who has the most command of the playbook at this time. Both Lynch and Robert Turbin will work out all week but there is nothing either can do to greatly improve game-day conditioning levels by then. Expect a three-way share of the duties, with the hot back getting the majority of the load. For the fans, the excitement will just be getting to see Lynch take the field.

NW: How big of a loss is left tackle Duane Brown?

LM: If last week was any indication, left tackle Duane Brown is absolutely imperative in keeping quarterback Russell Wilson standing. Wilson was pressured all day by the Cardinals and the rest of the line was clearly unable to protect in Brown’s absence. Lynch and the rest of the running backs won’t be able to be effective either if the offensive front doesn’t find a way to step up on Sunday.

NW: We know all about Russell Wilson and Jadeveon Clowney, but who’s the other most important player for the Seahawks on each side of the ball?

LM: With the run game a question mark, Russell Wilson is going to have to turn to his receiving corps to get the job done Week 17. Tyler Lockett is finally healthy and has the chance to make the most impact for the offense if he and Wilson can find a way to connect. Linebacker Bobby Wagner, the leader of the defense, will have to rally the troops in light of all the injuries. Seattle may have to turn to a backup or two if not all the starters are cleared to play by gameday. Wagner is key to steering the young players in the right direction.

49ers favored in Seattle for first time since 2011

The 49ers are actually giving points in Seattle for the first time since their last win at CenturyLink Field.

The 49ers find themselves in a very unique position Sunday in Seattle. They’re the favorites according to sports betting site Bet MGM, which has San Francisco favored by 3.5 points over the Seahawks.

Home teams generally get three points just for being at home, so the 49ers giving 3.5 is pretty significant. They haven’t been favored at Seattle since Week 16 of the 2011 season when they were giving 2.5 points. That was also the last time they earned a road win in Seattle.

Given the Seahawks’ injury situation – they’re down three running backs, their starting left tackle and have multiple players on defense dealing with injuries – it’s not a huge surprise the 49ers are getting some love from sports books in Week 17.

It’s also worth noting the Seahawks only won their first meeting by three in overtime in a game the 49ers didn’t have George Kittle and lost Emmanuel Sanders halfway through the contest.

On paper it makes sense San Francisco is favored. However, the Seattle cloud has hung over the 49ers every trip to the Pacific Northwest since the 42-13 beatdown the Seahawks put on the 49ers at CenturyLink Field in 2012. Seattle has won the last seven games vs. San Francisco at home, and none of them have been particularly competitive.

Sports books believe in the 49ers though, and while that’s a good, early sign, they still have to go in and take care of business against a well-coached, talented Seahawks club that will surely use their underdog status as a little added motivation in a game that’ll decide the NFC West.

[Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.]

Candlestick Chronicles: 49ers win vs. Rams sets up dream scenario vs. Seahawks

The 49ers knocked off the Rams, but now the playoffs essentially start Week 17 in Seattle.

The 49ers’ thrilling win over the Rams was huge, but it pales in comparison to the showdown it set up in Week 17 in Seattle.

Chris Biderman of the Sacramento Bee and Kyle Madson discuss what went right for San Francisco against the Rams, what the big picture takeaways were, and they introduced a new segment: Pop or Stop.

While trying to not look too far forward to Week 17, the guys discuss all the things from the Rams game that may impact the 49ers moving forward vs. the Seahawks.

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49ers playoff scenarios simplify after Packers beat Vikings

The 49ers can’t finish lower than the No. 5 seed in the NFC playoff picture, but No. 1 is still on the table.

The 49ers’ playoff scenarios simplified tremendously Monday when the Green Bay Packers knocked off the Minnesota Vikings 23-10 at U.S. Bank Stadium.

San Francisco was in a position to land at either the No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, No. 5 or No. 6 seed in Week 17 depending on how the rest of the week’s action shook out, and their position was based on the outcome of multiple games.

Now the scenarios are much simpler.

Here is the NFC playoff picture after Week 17:

1. 49ers (12-3)
2. Packers (12-3)
3. Saints (12-3)
4. Eagles (8-7)
5. Seahawks (11-4)
6. Vikings (10-5)

The 49ers get the No. 1 seed with a win over the Seahawks on Sunday. That’s the best-case scenario for San Francisco, which would get a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

They get the No. 5 seed with a loss to the Seahawks on Sunday. That means the 49ers go on the road wild card weekend to the winner of the NFC East. That’s either Dallas or Philadelphia depending on how their games go. The Eagles lock up the division with a win over the Giants. The Cowboys need a win over Washington and an Eagles loss to steal the NFC East crown.

Those are the two likeliest scenarios for the 49ers, and there’s no scenario where they finish lower than fifth.

Things get messy if the 49ers and Seahawks tie in Week 17, which is not an entirely outlandish situation considering the teams went to the final seconds of overtime in their Week 10 meeting.

If San Francisco and Seattle tie, the 49ers win the NFC West at 12-3-1.

That puts them at the No. 3 seed provided Green Bay and New Orleans both win. The Packers visit the Lions, while the Saints are in Carolina. If one of the two teams lose, the 49ers jump to the No. 2 seed. If both teams lose, the 49ers jump back to No. 1.

Getting the No. 3 seed means the 49ers host a wild card game against the No. 6 seed, which belongs to the Vikings no matter the outcome of their matchup with the Bears.

It’s still a little messy if the 49ers and Seahawks tie, but the more likely outcome of a win or loss makes San Francisco’s playoff future much clearer.