I hate the ‘every other week’ scheduling the NFL does for divisional games. One would think they could space things out a bit more by having a game in the first quarter of the season and then doing it towards the end. But what do I know about scheduling.
So it’s the Seahawks, again. A team Nick Mullens threw 400 yards on two weeks ago. The difference is, the 49ers are coming off a big win against a good football team in the Denver Broncos. While the offense managed only a half before calling it a day, the defense stepped in and didn’t allow the collapse we come to expect from the 2018 San Francisco 49ers.
The Broncos are a good team. The Seahawks are much, much better.
The 49ers will win if
The offense doesn’t put the defense into terrible situations. Nick Mullens may have thrown for 400 yards, but he, along with others, allowed the Seahawks defense to come in with some great field position. Can’t have that.
The numbers from the 49ers defense are nothing world beating, but they don’t appear bad by first glance. Once you take in that the defense started around the 40-50 yard line, you’d see why the yardage numbers were so low.
So to not put the defense in these situations the 49ers need to not only turn the ball over (wow, a shocker!) but also not turn it over at the worst possible times. Given how the Seahawks have been able to get points off turnover last time, the 49ers offense needs to protect the ball. They have shown they can run yards and scores if everyone is in sync, no dumb mistakes.
The 49ers will lose if
The defense falls apart yet again. The Seahawks run game had their way with the 49ers last time for 168 yards. Again, not bad until you realize how they won the field position battle all game. The defense also allowed numerous passes of 25+ yards to be completed. Simply put you aren’t going to win when you let the Russell Wilson special live on. The defense will once again need to clamp down contain Wilson. This is easier said than done, of course.
The offense has shown it can put numbers up against the Seahawks, the defense needs to show it can back things up and not let last-second scores change the tides of the game.