Seattle Seahawks: Recent Mastery of the 49ers Continues

Simply put, it was ugly.

The two-time defending NFC champion Seattle Seahawks looked the part in San Francisco on Thursday night against the hapless 49ers.

More from Seattle Seahawks

ALSO ON SPIN ZONE: Fantasy Football: Top 10 Sleepers for Week 7

Pete Carroll’s team, losers of four of their first six games this season and a team unable to protect a fourth-quarter lead, made sure there was no doubt left in their 20-3 victory. The Seahawks more than doubled their hosts when it came to total offense, rolling up 388 yards to the Niners’ 142.

Seattle’s pass rush sacked San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick six times (3.5 of those by defensive end Michael Bennett) and the San Francisco offense was a mere 1-of-11 on third-down conversions.

October 22, 2015; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Seattle Seahawks defensive tackle

Brandon Mebane

(92) sacks San Francisco 49ers quarterback

Colin Kaepernick

(7) during the fourth quarter at Levi

All told, it was the Seahawks’ fourth straight win in this rivalry and their mastery of Kaepernick continued. The fifth-year signal-caller saw his record in this series fall to a dismal 1-6 (including a loss in the 2013 NFC Championship Game) and the rest of the numbers are pretty sad as well.

In those seven games, Kaepernick has thrown three touchdown passes while committing 11 turnovers (9 interceptions, 2 fumbles lost). In those contests, the 49ers have scored a combined 65 points.

Then again, Carroll’s mastery of the Niners, at least defensively, hasn’t mattered who the quarterback is. Including the aforementioned postseason meeting, San Francisco is a mere 4-6 in their last 10 encounters with the Seahawks. In those games, the 49ers have totaled a mere 130 points while their offensive unit has managed to reach the end zone three times.

October 22, 2015; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Seattle Seahawks running back

Marshawn Lynch

(24) is congratulated by running back

Fred Jackson

(22) for scoring a touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers during the first quarter at Levi

For Seattle, it was a much-needed win as they look to get back to the top of the NFC West. At 3-4, the Seahawks travel to Dallas next week and then host the first-place Arizona Cardinals following an off-week. They pounded the Niners’ defense for 176 yards rushing, 122 of those by running back Marshawn Lynch, who scored the game’s first touchdown.

For the Niners, their recent problems continue as their record fell to 2-5. After going to three straight NFC title games from 2011-13, the club owns a 10-13 record in their last 23 games. Along that way, Kaepernick has been sacked a combined 77 times in those outings.

As for 2015, it’s been a rough debut for head coach Jim Tomsula. The Niners have allowed a combined 23 points in two wins but have given up 157 points in five setbacks. The team has yet to register a first-quarter touchdown in seven games this season and has been outscored 39-9 in the first 15 minutes of play. Then again, this is a San Francisco team almost unrecognizable these days due mainly to a troubling offseason which saw the franchise endure its share of defections, releases and retirements.

Hence a rivalry that was among the league’s best not too long ago has suddenly turned one-sided in favor of the Seahawks, who have now won two straight years at San Francisco.

Of course, all good things must eventually come to an end, even rivalries as intense as this one was for a few years. For Carroll’s club, it’s very apparent there’s still a lot of life yet in a defending conference champion, one that showed on Thursday night that they aren’t going anywhere soon when it comes to bowing out of the NFC West race.

Next: NFL Defensive Player of the Year Candidates

More from NFL Spin Zone

Home/Seattle Seahawks