The Seattle Seahawks took their annual trip to the Bay to play their division rival, the San Francisco 49ers. Daily Cal sports writers Eric Hayrapetian and Ken Lester break it all down.
Week 14 is in the books for the Seattle Seahawks as a trip to Santa Clara ended in a 28-16 defeat to the best team in the NFL, the San Francisco 49ers.
Despite the expected loss, I’ve been waiting to have my fellow Daily Cal Hawks fan, Ken Lester, join me in my weekly column.
Instant Reactions/Thoughts:
Ken Lester: To be honest, the game actually went better than I expected. Sunday was the first time in my life that I willingly turned down free Seahawks tickets — I anticipated an absolute bloodbath, but they held their own to an extent. The Hawks aren’t the team I thought they would be at the beginning of the year — they’re not horrible, but they are certainly nowhere near the level of this Niners team. It was a valiant effort in the face of inevitable destruction.
Eric Hayrapetian: The Niners just did Niner things and Seattle had no answer. The Seahawks’ first offensive drive looked to be promising as DK Metcalf aimed to replicate his performance from last week at Dallas. But once Charvarius Ward left the game, San Francisco adjusted immediately with a two-high safety look the rest of the way, and the deep ball was nullified. Also, Seattle being without Geno Smith and losing Devon Witherspoon threw any possibility of winning out the window. I’m just disappointed in the big plays the Hawks gave up and the lack of aggression on fourth down.
Player of the Game:
KL: Deebo Samuel. I know this is a Seahawks column and I am a diehard Hawks fan through-and-through, but that man is a baller. Maybe if Metcalf could have kept up his first-quarter numbers throughout the entirety of the game, I’d be talking about him instead, but the Niners saw the threat and shut him down. Samuel is a magician, as are a lot of players on the 49ers offense. At least he’s on my fantasy team.
EH: Ken nailed it with Samuel, but for the sake of this being a Seahawks column, I’ll give the honor to Drew Lock. And I know, how can I give it to a quarterback who threw two picks and only managed to put 16 points on the scoreboard? Well, it’s because Lock took his first snap as a starter for Seattle — he has my vote with 269 passing yards and two touchdowns in a hostile environment.
Seahawks Rant:
KL: I want to stop seeing Jamal Adams get burned by wideouts. He’s an incredibly talented, athletic and tenacious player, but he’s getting eaten alive in coverage this year. Remember his first year with the Hawks when he set the single-season record for sacks by a safety? Yeah, let's do more of that with him. I don’t care that he’s a safety; put him at outside linebacker and let him eat. Also: Smith and Lock aren’t the guys — I love ‘em, but let's get Michael Penix Jr. in the draft.
EH: This team needs a cleanse and it starts with Seattle’s two safeties, Quandre Diggs and Adams. I can’t stand watching these guys in coverage. Diggs, a bonafide playmaker in his career, has been a liability and can’t wrap guys up to save his life. Ken touched on Adams so I’ll skip over him, but for me, both guys should not be in a Seahawks uniform come next season. I also think the playoffs are out of reach, so work on building your draft pick stock and focus on finding the franchise quarterback in this year’s draft — Bo Nix, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye or Penix.
Flame the Niners:
KL: This must be how Niner fans felt during the Hawks' run in the mid-2010s. But we won a Super Bowl one of those years. They have to prove it.
EH: Purdy is a fraud and a check-down merchant who only benefits from Kyle Shanahan’s scheme, an elite defense and an offense with the league’s best playmakers. That may or may not be accurate, but I do know that the 49er faithful is closing in on 30 years since their last Super Bowl.
Contact Eric Hayrapetian at Eric.hayrapetian@gmail.com
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