Will the 49ers beat the Seahawks for the third time this season?

Playoffs, baby! Those very playoffs begin in the NFL with “Super Wildcard Weekend” on Saturday night! It opens with an NFC West division duel, with the San Francisco 49ers hosting the Seattle Seahawks. A bet on the home side seems to make sense insofar as they won both games in the regular season against the franchise from Washington State. However, with win odds settling at 1.22, the value is extremely low.

The Niners also won the match on the last day of play against the Arizona Cardinals. With that, they finished the season with a 13-4 win-loss record. After week seven, in which they suffered their only home loss of the season, they stood at a 3-4 record. They followed that up with a strong ten straight wins, which is the longest active “winning streak” in the NFL.

Next to the New York Giants, the Seahawks are arguably the biggest surprise in the “National Football Conference” postseason. Thanks to their own overtime win against the Los Angeles Rams and the Green Bay Packers’ loss to the Detroit Lions in the final game of the season, head coach Pete Carroll’s team still slipped into seventh place in the NFC. If you place a bet on a surprise, you can get odds of up to 5.25 between the 49ers and Seahawks on the markets.

San Francisco 49ers – Statistics & current form

For the first time since 2011, San Francisco won both games against Seattle this season and did so despite the game time going very differently than expected. A quick look back: the Niners enter the season in September with the “3rd overall pick” of the 2021 draft class, quarterback Trey Lance, and lose the opener to the Chicago Bears. Lance was injured in the first quarter of the second game against the Seahawks, so veteran Jimmy Garoppolo had to take over as playmaker. With him, the Californians won seven of ten appearances until he broke several bones in his foot against the Miami Dolphins. Since then, rookie Brock Purdy has been the focal point of the offensive game.

From “Mr. Irrelevant” to Hopeful

With Purdy leading the offense onto the field since Week 14, the 49ers have yet to lose a game. The 23-year-old, who came to the Bay Area as “Mr. Irrelevant” at No. 262 in this year’s draft, has shown some impressive performances so far. He is the second rookie after Justin Herbert in 2020 to score at least two touchdown passes in six consecutive games. It’s no secret that he’s benefiting from a variety of playmakers in the passing and running game, and that the offensive concept suits him. Still, the statistics with him look absolutely impressive: In the first eleven games the Niners scored an average of 22.6 points, in the six following games with Purdy the average was 33.5 points.

The fewest points in recent weeks, however, came on matchday 15 in the 49ers vs. Seahawks clash. A prediction that the visitors will once again be able to limit the home side’s offensive output is by no means far-fetched. On the one hand, it is of course the first play-off game for the young playmaker, on the other hand, Seattle managed to hold the Niners to under 30 points in both duels.

Seen over the regular season, the defensive unit from California was the best in the entire league. Now, according to last Monday’s injury report, they get two important building blocks back in time for the postseason in Dre Greenlaw and Kevin Givens. Greenlaw could ensure that opposing passes are defended better again. Both the Las Vegas Raiders and the Cardinals revealed weaknesses there. If the home side ultimately manages to get a grip on the two star receivers on the visitors’ side, a tip between the 49ers and Seahawks for a surprise Seattle win becomes even less likely.

Key Players:
QB: Brock Purdy
RB: Christian McCaffrey
WR: Brandon Aiyuk
TE: George Kittle
K: Robbie Gould

Seattle Seahawks – Statistics & current form

Before the season, few would have guessed the Seahawks would make the playoffs – largely due to their quarterback selection. Because Geno Smith, who prevailed over Drew Lock in the duel for the playmaker position, threw a total of only 196 passes from 2015 to 2021. By comparison, he has thrown 572 passes so far this season and undoubtedly played a major role in the nine victories that were ultimately just enough to secure a place in the postseason.

But Seattle itself could not have made the playoffs much more exciting. They had to go into overtime against the Rams at 16:16. There, the defence made sure with an interception that the offence had the opportunity to win the game.

Passinggame as a trump card against a strong defence?

Against LA, Smith had his usual highlight plays after an early interception, with the touchdown to Tyler Lockett being the icing on the cake. It’s those accurate passes that could provide excitement in the matchup between the 49ers and Seahawks. A prediction that the visitors will start right there is logical, because in the running game they will have to take on the second-best rushing defence in the NFL.

Defensively, the Hawks have improved in recent weeks. They allowed only 21 and 24 points against the strong 49ers and Chiefs offences. In addition, they held the New York Jets to a total of only six points. That’s exactly why we rule out the home side scoring over 27 points.

Key Players:
QB: Geno Smith
RB: Kenneth Walker III
WR: DK Metcalf
TE: Noah Fant
K: Jason Myers

San Francisco 49ers – Seattle Seahawks Head-to-head comparison / H2H record

For the second time ever, the two franchises will face each other in the playoffs. In 2013, the Seahawks won the “NFC Championship Game” with 23:17, entered Super Bowl XLVIII and subsequently lifted the only “Vince Lombardi Trophy” to date.

Since San Francisco, as mentioned, won the two previous season appearances against Seattle, they have the opportunity to make history in the upcoming duel. The bookies put the probability of the 49ers achieving this at around 85 per cent.

San Francisco 49ers – Seattle Seahawks Tip

We come to the conclusion that the Niners can make it very far in the playoffs with their enormously versatile offence and strong defence, but the quarterback factor should not be completely ignored. For Purdy, it is the first time in his short NFL career against a team he has already played against – and that could well play into the visitors’ hands. The 49ers’ offensive performance on Game Day 15, despite the 21 points, was not entirely outstanding. That is also the reason why we see the game closer than the betting companies. Using the offered handicap of 9.5 points, we see it as extremely realistic that Seattle will have the upper hand.

In their two appearances this season, the Hawks have only scored two touchdowns, but the last few weeks have shown that the good defence of the team from the Bay Area can be attacked via the passing game. Therefore, we also dare to predict that the guests will successfully find the end zone at least twice, which will bring attractive odds in the upcoming matchup between the 49ers and Seahawks.

Differential players abound on both sides, but when we weigh up who we think is most likely to score a touchdown, our choice would fall on George Kitte, the hosts’ tight end. He has scored a total of seven in the last four games, including two against Seattle. That thickly underlines the fact that he is one of the most important kick-off stations for the young 49ers playmaker.