Three Things We Learned From the 49ers’ Victory in Seattle

Another game between the 49ers and Seahawks went down to the wire. Only except this matchup carried the heaviest weight in recent memory. The winner of this game would become NFC west champions and host a playoff game. Unlike week 10, it was the San Francisco 49ers who came out on top in this one.

Now the 49ers are the top seed and have homefield advantage throughout the playoffs. Winning against the Seahawks is no easy feat, especially in Seattle where the 49ers hadn’t won since 2011. It was great win for the 49ers that showed us more about them.

With that said: Here are the three things we learned from the 49ers’ 26-21 victory against the Seahawks.

George Kittle and Emmanuel Sanders Were the Missing Ingredients

The initial matchup in week 10 between these two teams went in favor of the Seahawks. It went down to the wire much like this game, only except week 10 needed overtime to decided the winner. Now that the 49ers had a dominating offensive performance to win the division, it is clear that George Kittle and Emmanuel Sanders were the missing ingredients in week 10.

Kittle was nursing an ankle fracture and Sanders went out early with a rib injury. In Sunday nights game, Kittle and Sanders were key factors in the win. They combined for 10 catches and 111 yards. It’s not eye popping numbers, but considering how situational their catches were - it made a world of a difference. Instead of having just one option at receiver (Deebo Samuel) to throw to like in week 10, Jimmy Garoppolo had a talented trio of receivers.

Seattle’s defense struggled trying to contain them. When Kittle was schemed out on one play, Sanders or Samuel were there to pick up the slack. Going forward, this offense will be a tough one slow down in the passing game, especially if you include the running backs.

Jimmy Garoppolo More Than Capable of Leading 49ers in Playoffs

Remember how critics of the 49ers believed that Garoppolo was a weakness on the team? Surely their tune must be changed now that he has shown just how good he is. The 49ers’ last five games have essentially come down to the final moments of the game.

From matching a shootout against Drew Brees to converting two third-and-16 plays. Garoppolo has proven that he can handle high pressure and improbable situations. That is why he is more than capable of leading the 49ers in the playoffs. The goalposts shifted all season long with him. First it was if he was good enough? Then most recently it became if he can help the team win a playoff game?

He does not have any playoff experience meaning pressured moments could cause him to slip. Well it’s safe to say he is more than capable after participating and being the cause for winning many of these high stakes games. With the 49ers set to take the stage in the divisional round at Levi’s Stadium, the least of their worries will be Jimmy Garoppolo.

Ahkello Witherspoon is a liability in coverage

If you wanted the 49ers to bench Ahkello Witherspoon in favor of Emmanuel Moseley entering week 17, then you were right on the money.

Witherspoon had another horrendous performance for a third consecutive game. Rookie receiver D.K. Metcalf was outright abusing him for the majority of the night. Comeback routes and crossers were the weak spot that the Seahawks wanted to exploit against him. It was one thing to let Julio Jones serve him up and even Robert Woods to a certain extent. But to allow a rookie like Metcalf to gash him for most of the game is unacceptable.

Witherspoon is now a liability in coverage. His confidence is clearly shot and you can tell that is what is hurting him. The soft coverage that he plays appears deeper than how the rest of the secondary plays. In his first few games of the season, Witherspoon played tighter to his receiver and forced quarterbacks to throw in a small window.

Now he is just allow easy completions on crossers or just getting outworked in the endzone. Emmanuel Moseley has to be the guy going forward. Too much is at stake to afford errors like that. The cushion that the 49ers afforded Witherspoon has ran out. In the divisional game, it needs to Moseley opposite of Richard Sherman to ensure a much cleaner game in coverage.

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