Seahawks vs 49ers: 5 takeaways from an unconvincing win
The Seattle Seahawks won game, but nothing about this win will give fans confidence about their team’s chances of bringing home an other Super Bowl.
The Seattle Seahawks wrapped up their 2016 season today with an unconvincing 25-23 win over the dreadfully bad San Francisco 49ers. The game will do little to provide encouragement for fans as the Seahawks head into playoffs.
Let’s just jump straight into my 5 takeaways from today’s game:
1. Yet another slow start
At the end of the first quarter, the Seahawks found themselves down 14-3. The defense let the 49ers walk down the field for 2 easy scores, and the offense didn’t even have the first down.
If fact, at the end of the first quarter, the Seahawks had a grand total of 10 offensive yards.
The Seahawks cannot let this happen in the playoffs, or it’ll mean an early exit just like last year.
January 1, 2017; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick (7) runs past Seattle Seahawks middle linebacker Bobby Wagner (54) during the second quarter at Levi
2. Bobby Wagner should be NFL’s Defensive player of the Year
Seattle’s star middle linebacker entered the game with the NFL’s lead in total tackles. He might have been even better today.
Wagner’s stat line included 12 tackles and 2 sacks. He was all over the field, and seemed to be near the ball on every play.
Wagner ended up with 167 tackles this season, which is tops in the entire NFL. He also had 4.5 sacks and an interception. None of the players close to Wagner in tackles have better peripheral stats than he does.
No player this season has gaudy sack or interception stats. Only Wagner’s tackles stand out above everyone else. He might not win it, but he deserve to be named the league’s defensive MVP this season.
Oct 22, 2015; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Seattle Seahawks kicker Steven Hauschka (4) kicks a field goal against the San Francisco 49ers during the fourth quarter at Levi
3. Special teams continue to be a problem
Steven Hauschka had yet another PAT blocked today. This one couldn’t even be blamed on the long snapper. The snap and hold were good, Hauschka just drove the ball way too low.
That doesn’t mean Nolan Frese wasn’t his usual terrible self though. He committed a massive error when he snapped the ball over Jon Ryan’s head for a safety.
That caused a Seahawks legend to to weigh in on Frese.
I think Walter Jones expects Seattle to have a new long snapper next week. pic.twitter.com/vLAEmfy9om
— Grinch Keith Myers (@MyersNFL) January 2, 2017
You’re a long-snapper. You have one job. You cannot be giving the opponent free points.
This isn’t a one-time mistake either. There hasn’t been a game this season where Frese has not had a bad snap. This one just happened to be his worst of the year.
Jan 1, 2017; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson (3) hands off the football to running back Thomas Rawls (34) during the first quarter against the San Francisco 49ers at Levis Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Neville E. Guard-USA TODAY Sports
4. The Seahawks cannot run the ball
The San Francisco 49ers have the worst rush defense in the NFL. They rank dead last in yards per carry against. Surely the Seahawks were going to be able to do something on the ground in this game, right?
You might think that, but then you’d be wrong. The Seahawks’ run offense was as bad as it has been all season. They simply could not get anything going on the ground.
Thomas Rawls had 8 carries 14 yards. Every time he touched the ball he was dodging defenders behind the line of scrimmage.
The Seahawks finished with only 87 rushing yards. 19 of those came from Wilson, Boykin and Richardson. 50 of those yard came on 2 Alex Collins runs on Seattle’s final possession.
There is no excuse for this performance on the ground. If Seattle can’t run against the 49ers, then they can’t run against anyone.
Jan 1, 2017; Detroit, MI, USA; Green Bay Packers running back Ty Montgomery (88) is tackled by Detroit Lions cornerback Darius Slay (23) during the first quarter at Ford Field. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
5. Bring on the Lions… or Packers…
The Seahawks won, but the Saints didn’t do their part. Seattle didn’t secure a 1st round bye, so they’ll host a playoff game next week. They’ll find out who they play at the end of Sunday Night Football.
The Seahawks will face the loser of the Packers-Lions game. The winner of that game will host the Giants next week. The loser travels to Seattle.
Obviously, the Seahawks would rather face the Lions. As we learned last month, the Seahawks don’t match up well against the Packers.
The good news is that the Seahawks came away from today’s game healthy.
No new injuries for #Seahawks today.
— Stephen Cohen (@scohenPI) January 2, 2017
They should be ready to go no mater who comes who town next week.
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