Sam Darnold was right.
The Seahawks quarterback and former 49ers backup told Brock Purdy on Jan. 3 that they’d see each other in a couple of weeks. Following the Niners’ 23-19 win Sunday over the Eagles in the wild-card round of the playoffs, the NFC West rubber match is on.
The divisional foes will meet in the divisional round on Saturday (time TBA) after going nearly four months between the 49ers’ season-opening win and the Seahawks’ No. 1 seed-clinching victory.
The Niners’ path to Seattle was clinched by their dramatic win in Philly on a defensive stand as well as a win Saturday by the last team they beat that way: the Chicago Bears, who beat the Green Bay Packers in a pulse-pounding wild-card game.
San Francisco is the lowest remaining seed with Green Bay’s ouster, sending them to the Pacific Northwest.
THIS SEASON’S MATCHUPS
Jan. 3, 2026
Seattle broke the 49ers’ six-game winning streak by stuffing the run and giving the receivers no quarter, holding the Niners to just 173 total yards (and just 53 rushing). The Seahawks turned the ball over on downs at the 49ers’ 4-yard line and missed a field goal on two of their first three possessions, leaving the door open for a comeback. But the Niners’ offense never got rolling, producing just nine first downs. The 49ers finally sustained a long drive in the fourth quarter, only to have Brock Purdy’s pass go off the hands of Christian McCaffrey and into those of Drake Thomas.
Sept. 7, 2025
Brock Purdy engineered a fourth-quarter drive to secure a comeback win. (Sound familiar?) He found Jake Tonges in the corner of the end zone to put the 49ers ahead with 1:34 left in the game. The Seattle offense drove deep into 49ers territory before Nick Bosa sacked Darnold, forcing a fumble he recovered himself to seal the win. Tonges stepped up when Kittle went out with a hamstring injury.
49ERS’ OFFENSE VS. SEAHAWKS
Without Ricky Pearsall two weeks ago, the 49ers could not create separation for Purdy to exploit. Against an aggressive defense, Purdy had just 4.0 yards per pass, while the run game also struggled without Trent Williams. McCaffrey had just 23 yards on eight carries. Even in the season opener, McCaffery had just 69 yards on 22 carries, but Purdy came through when it mattered, picking up 15 first downs via the pass as the Niners held the ball for nearly 38 minutes.
49ERS’ DEFENSE VS. SEAHAWKS
Seattle controlled the Week 18 game by staying ahead of the chains with its two-back rushing attack. Kenneth Walker III had 97 yards on 16 carries and Zach Charbonnet had 74 on 17 totes. That took pressure off Darnold, who went 20-of-26 in the win. That was not the case in Week 1, when Seattle managed just 84 yards on the ground against a full-strength 49ers defense. The Seahawks are a high-turnover team on both sides of the ball, but the 49ers have forced just two takeaways in the season series — both fumbles in the opener.
INJURY WATCH
49ers: Kittle’s Achilles injury is just the latest in their long line of health trouble this season. Kyle Shanahan said the chances of a return by Fred Warner (ankle) in time for the divisional round were low. Pearsall (knee, ankle) missed a second consecutive game Sunday, and Dee Winters (ankle) also missed the playoff opener. Ji’Ayir suffered a hamstring injury in Philadelphia and Shanahan was not optimistic about him playing in Seattle.
Seahawks: Seattle has had a week to rest up after the regular-season finale. Left tackle Charles Cross missed that game with a hamstring injury, as did safety Coby Bryant with a knee issue.
PLAYOFF HISTORY
The teams have only faced off twice in the playoffs, since Seattle wasn’t in the NFC until 2002, splitting the pair.
The Seahawks won a dramatic NFC title game after the 2013 season when Richard Sherman batted away a pass to Michael Crabtree in the end zone that became a game-sealing interception to win 23-17. Those Seahawks went on to crush the Broncos in the Super Bowl.
The Niners won the playoff rematch in January 2023, kicking off their own run to the Super Bowl. San Francisco trailed 17-16 at halftime after blowing an early lead, but took over in the second half to cruise to a 41-23 win. Purdy had three touchdowns and 332 yards passing in the win.
ROAD DOGS
The 49ers have won their past five games away from Levi’s Stadium. They’ll have to win two more — in Seattle next weekend and either Los Angeles or Chicago in the NFC title game — to earn another home game for Super Bowl LX.
The Mercury News
Leave a Reply