On Thursday Night Football, the Seattle Seahawks welcomed the San Francisco 49ers to Lumen Field in an NFC West divisional battle. Both teams were looking to bounce back from losses in Week 5.
The home team suffered a shock 29-20 loss against the New York Giants, who were without standout wide receiver Malik Nabers. The Seahawks started the year 3-0 but had since lost two straight and were keen on not dropping to 3-3 and losing the top spot in the NFC West standings.
The 49ers opened their season with a comfortable win over the New York Jets but then lost two straight games to the Minnesota Vikings and Los Angeles Rams. They ended their poor run with a 30-13 win over the New England Patriots and were seemingly cruising to another victory over the Arizona Cardinals last Sunday. However, they were outscored 11-0 in the fourth quarter and lost by a point.
Both teams felt they should've come into this game on the back of a victory. However, their losses meant neither could afford another defeat on Thursday night. Here's how the game transpired:
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Seattle Seahawks vs San Francisco 49ers box score
Seahawks box score
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49ers box score
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Seattle Seahawks vs San Francisco 49ers summary
The Seahawks got off to a fine start as Geno Smith and the offense marched down to the 49ers' 25-yard line and looked primed to open the scoring. However, on a 3rd-and-5 play, the veteran quarterback overthrew a homerun pass to Tyler Lockett and it was picked off at the one-yard line by safety Malik Mustapha.
The 49ers offense started deep in their own territory but Brock Purdy led them on a 10-play, 90-yard drive that gave his team the opportunity to open the scoring with a touchdown. However, the drive stalled at the Seahawks' seven-yard line and they had to settle for a field goal to take a 3-0 lead.
The defenses took control of the proceedings as the next three drives ended with punts. The 49ers offense roared back to life courtesy of an explosive 76-yard touchdown catch by Deebo Samuel which helped his team extend its lead to 10-0.
Things continued to worsen for the home team as on the ensuing kickoff, Laviska Shenault fumbled the ball, giving Purdy and the offense a short field to work with. They couldn't capitalize on it and San Francisco had to settle for a field goal to extend its lead to 13-0.
The Seahawks' offense remained dormant and punted the ball back to the 49ers, who embarked on another 13-play, 64-yard drive before debutant Matthew Wright converted his third field goal of the half from 35 yards out.
Seattle ended the half on a positive note as Smith and the offense finally woke up and drove the ball 59 yards to set up a 20-yard field goal attempt for Jason Myers, who converted with ease to get the home team on the scoreboard.
In the opening drive of the second half, Purdy and the 49ers' offense continued where they left off in the first, and methodically picked apart the Seahawks' defense to score another touchdown and take a 23-3 lead.
Seattle needed a miracle to get back in the game and Shenault provided it, as he made up for his error in the first half with a 97-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.
The 49ers offense, which had scored on four successive possession, couldn't respond to the Seahawks' explosive play and punted the ball back after running only five plays.
The Seahawks started their drive at their own six-yard line but quickly found themselves in 49ers territory, courtesy of Smith's 37-yard pass to Lockett. San Francisco's defense struggled to contain Seattle's onslaught and was powerless to stop Kenneth Walker from punching the ball into the endzone from the one-yard line, which cut the deficit to six.
Purdy and the 49ers offense's struggles since their last touchdown continued, as they punted on two straight possessions and had no choice but to rely on their defense to the Seahawks at bay. However, the defense exceeded expectations as Renardo Green picked off Smith to give his team an easy scoring opportunity.
The offense made no mistake in capitalizing on the Seahawks' error as Purdy and George Kittle combined for a touchdown for the second time in the game. The 49ers attempted a two-point try but failed and their lead remained 12.
The Seahawks did not go down without a fight and embarked on a gritty 18-play, 71-yard drive before Smith and Lockett combined to cut the 49ers' lead to five points.
In the ensuing drive, San Francisco needed one first down to ice the game, but running back Isaac Guerendo, who took the bulk of the ball carries after running back Jordan Mason went down with an injury, embarked on a 76-yard run to give his team the chance to virtually end the game with a touchdown.
Fullback Kyle Juszczyk obliged and scored his first rushing touchdown of the season to seal the win for the visitors.
In the game's penultimate drive, Seattle tried to score to keep the contest alive. However, they turned the ball over on downs before Purdy knelt the clock out to seal the win.
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