Seahawks Overcome Red Zone Miscues, Grind Out 30-23 Win Over 49ers
Despite leaving a ton of points on the field in an exhilarating train wreck of a game, the Seahawks found a way to hold on late in regulation and snap a three-game losing streak with a 30-23 victory over the 49ers, completing the season sweep of their rivals .
Turning in his best outing since coming back from finger surgery last month, Russell Wilson completed 30 out of 37 passes for 231 yards and threw a pair of touchdowns to Dee Eskridge and Tyler Lockett. Defensively, Bobby Wagner and Quandre Diggs both picked off Jimmy Garoppolo and Carlos Dunlap secured the win with a fourth down pass deflection with 22 seconds left to play.
Here are five quick observations from a bizarre Week 13 thriller:
1. Despite poor protection in front of him, Wilson finally busted out of his slump in a big way.
Without starting left guard Damien Lewis, things got off to a horrible start for the Seahawks keeping Wilson upright. The quarterback was running for his life during the early going and took a pair of sacks on the first three drives, including fumbling the ball on a strip-sack by Nick Bosa that wound up losing 23 yards after an interception by Wagner granted them with fabulous field position. Moments later, Jason Myers missed on a 56-yard field goal after the team tried to crawl out of a 2nd and 43 scenario. On the next possession, Arik Armstead got to him quickly on first down, destroying the drive from the outset and leading to a punt.
But from there, Wilson was wheeling and dealing for Seattle, spreading the ball around to a total of nine receivers primarily with the quick passing game. With San Francisco up 17-7 with 9:48 to go in the second quarter, the star quarterback promptly lead a nine-play, 65-yard scoring drive that included a 3rd and 14 completion to DK Metcalf for 33 yards. Adrian Peterson scored from a yard out two plays later, tying Jim Brown for the 10th most touchdowns in NFL history. After the 49ers answered with a touchdown of their own, Wilson led another scoring drive aided by two roughing the passer penalties that culminated in a seven-yard touchdown to Eskridge, cutting the lead to 23-21. With the game knotted up at 23-all midway through the third quarter, moments after Diggs' pick, he dropped a picture-perfect 12-yard touchdown to Lockett in the back right corner of the end zone that proved to be the game winner.
2. Missed opportunities turned a potential blowout into a barnburner for Seattle.
While the Seahawks won, they shouldn't have had to worry about orchestrating a goal line stand in the closing minutes. On three different occasions, they had the football at the 49ers 31-yard line or better and failed to score any points with those opportunities, including twice inside the five-yard line. Aside from Wilson's unfortunate fumble on Bosa's strip sack leading to a difficult field goal try by Myers, the team couldn't capitalize on a forced fumble caused by linebacker Nick Bellore on the opening kickoff of the third quarter. Starting at the 49ers 26-yard line, they drove down to the five before tight end Gerald Everett had a touchdown pass slip out of his grasp at the goal line. Unable to bring in the pass, the ball bounced up in the air and corner K'Wuan Williams intercepted it, leaving Seattle empty-handed.
Then in the fourth quarter, Wilson marched the Seahawks on a long, methodical drive spanning more than six minutes. After Rashaad Penny picked up 27 yards on a third down screen, Travis Homer plowed forward on 4th and 1 and they had 1st and Goal at the 49ers one-yard line. Peterson was stuffed on the next two plays and then on 3rd and Goal, Everett caught a shovel pass at the goal line and fumbled, allowing corner Dontae Johnson to fall on it for a devastating turnover. It was a game to forget for the fifth-year tight end, who also lost a fumble in the first quarter that led to a 24-yard touchdown pass from Garoppolo to George Kittle. Between those three ruined possessions, at least nine points were left off the board, if not more.
3. Kittle proved to be a tackle-breaking, touchdown-scoring nightmare for the 'Hawks defense.
Anyone who follows football closely knows Kittle, a former All-Pro and two-time Pro Bowler, belongs listed among the league's premier all-around tight ends. But historically, the Seahawks have actually done a fairly decent job defending him in the passing game, including limiting him to four receptions for 40 yards back in Week 4. He had never scored a touchdown in eight previous matchups against them and came into this game in the midst of a down season by his standards.
Unfortunately, those two trends didn't continue on Sunday, however. Immediately after Everett's first fumble, Garoppolo found the 6-foot-4, 250-pound tight end in the back of the end zone after he split coverage from D.J. Reed and Diggs to tie the game at 7 apiece. Then after the two minute warning, he displayed incredible athleticism and balance for his size, tight-roping the sideline and breaking through a tackle attempt by Wagner after catching a short drag route, eventually racing into the end zone for a spectacular 48-yard score. Though the performance came in a losing effort, he torched Seattle with nine receptions for 181 yards, a 20.1 yards per reception average, and two scores.
4. Turnovers and excellent run defense helped Seattle offset Kittle's monster outing.
Heading into Sunday's rematch, the 49ers had been dicing up opponents on the ground during a three-game winning streak, averaging nearly 180 rushing yards per game behind the stellar play of rookie Elijah Mitchell. While Mitchell scored a two-yard touchdown in the second quarter, he was held in check for the most part, rushing 22 times for 66 yards and just 3.0 yards per carry and the team badly missed star receiver Deebo Samuel's versatility as a ball carrier. At the forefront of that outstanding effort for the Seahawks was sophomore linebacker Jordyn Brooks, who led the team with 11 tackles and also brought down Mitchell for a tackle for loss in the first quarter.
Along with the run defense being stout, the Seahawks forced Garoppolo into bad decisions and capitalized. After the quarterback carried out a play fake on a first down throw with 8:42 to go in the first quarter, Wagner dropped back into coverage and the telegraphed pass arrived in his bread basket for an early Christmas gift from Santa Jimmy. Later in the third quarter, the quarterback airmailed a first down throw trying to squeeze the ball to Kittle with Wagner in coverage and landed right in Diggs' hands for his team-leading fourth interception of the season. Adding in Travis Homer's fumble recovery on special teams, Seattle generated a season-best three turnovers and also forced the game-ending turnover on downs on Dunlap's pass deflection.
5. Special teams ultimately saved the day with multiple game-changing plays.
Long before Wilson found his groove in the final two-plus quarters, the Seahawks offense remained stuck in quicksand as it had the past three games. But they were able to strike first on their opening possession thanks to a gusty call deep in their own territory. Identifying an ideal defensive look for a fake punt on 4th and 6, Homer called his own number on a direct snap from the Seahawks 27-yard line. With the 49ers not setting the edge, the third-year back found a giant crease and then cut back to allow Bellore to lay a key block for him, eventually finding the end zone for a thrilling 73-yard score.
In the second half, Seattle continued to excel in the third phase of the game. Bellore punched the ball out of returner Travis Benjamin's hands on the opening kickoff and Homer pounced on the loose ball for a quick turnover. Michael Dickson continued his wizardry as a punter, nailing two punts inside the 20-yard line. On one of those plays early in the fourth quarter, cornerback John Reid and receiver Penny Hart flew down the field and tag-teamed to bring down returner Brandon Aiyuk for a four-yard loss way back at the San Francisco eight-yard line. Three plays later, the 49ers were forced to punt deep in their own territory.
