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The Seattle Seahawks season was minutes from being over on Sunday as they trailed the San Francisco 49ers by four points with the clock winding down. Just when things looked just about over, Geno Smith saved the season with a heroic game-winning touchdown drive, capped off with a 13-yard scramble inside the left pylon.
With this win, the Seahawks got back to .500 at 5-5 and are now in a three-way tie for second place in the NFC West. This was also Smith's first time beating the 49ers after losing his first five starts against his arch rivals. After the game, it was clear Smith knew how big this game was according to Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times.
“We knew how much was at stake, man,” Smith said, per Condotta. “We were trying to turn our season around.”
Smith had an efficient day on Sunday, save for one costly interception. He finished 25-for-32 with 221 yards and that rushing touchdown at the end of the game, as the Seahawks passing game looked much better with DK Metcalf back in the lineup.
After a long stretch of losing that looked like it was going to put the Seahawks out of playoff contention, Mike Macdonald's group is right back in the mix in a wild NFC West race.
Seahawks finding their identity during back half of season
After a 3-0 start in the first season with Mike Macdonald as head coach, Seattle ran into a rough patch in the middle of the season. Five losses in six games dropped them to the brink of virtual elimination before the Seahawks saved their season on Sunday.
The Seahawks returned from their bye week looking like a totally different team than they were during that losing streak. They have known who they are on the offensive side of the ball all season, and having DK Metcalf back is a big boost to the team, but the defensive side of the ball is where ethereally shined in Week 11.
The Seahawks defense was aggressive and was constantly dictating terms to the talented 49ers offense in a way that they weren't when the two teams met earlier in the season. This game plan looked much more like what Macdonald's Ravens defenses used to do, and that was something that clearly made the 49ers uncomfortable.
Devon Witherspoon had one of his best games of the season, and the linebacker moves to cut Tyrel Dodson and trade Jerome Baker for Ernest Jones looked like positive decisions. They also started Josh Jobe in place of Tre Brown at cornerback, which seemed to give the defense a boost.
The Seahawks blitzed Brock Purdy a lot and played a lot of man coverage on the outside, as they were not threatened by the 49ers' wideouts on the perimeter. As a result, everything felt restricted on offense for the 49ers and they were unable to generate their usual production.
