Ever since the NFL regular season schedule was released in April, I've been waiting for this game. Although teams like Dallas, Green Bay, and New England were peppered throughout the Seahawks early season schedule, the 49ers game is still the one that jumped out at me. They are the team that likely stands between the Seahawks and the NFC West crown. They also beat the Hawks twice last season in two intense games. Sprinkle in this...
and the fact that the teams are built to play similar styles of football and you've got the recipe for a great rivalry. Oh, and did I mention that the fans of each team are really starting to hate one another? That helps too. The 49ers and their fans were none to happy about the hit Michael Robinson and Adrian Moten put on Kyle Williams last season. I thought it was clean and should have been a fumble but 49ers fans called the Seahawks dirty and their fans tasteless for cheering as Kyle Williams stayed on the turf after a devastating double decker Seahawk sandwich. Kind of funny and ironic when you consider that 49ers fans went nuts back in 09 when Patrick Willis injured Seahawks QB Matt Hasselbeck. But that's neither here nor there.
The good news is that the Seahawks are currently trending upward with the 49ers now trending downward. Seattle has won 2 in a row and 4 of their last 5 while the 49ers are coming off a spanking at home from the Giants and have lost 2 of their last 4. While it seems that Seattle is beginning to figure out the rest of the league and how to win games playing their brand of football, it appears that teams are starting to figure out how to beat the 49ers. Once again the Giants have provided the Seahawks with a formula to defeat a common opponent. First it was their dominance over the Carolina Panthers that showed the Panthers weaknesses against the run and inability to stop tall receivers as well as how to slow down Cam Newton. Then it was the Patriots. Play physical with Brady and his skill players and they will wear down as the game progresses. Now it's the 49ers. The Giants demonstrated that if you contain Vernon Davis and the 49ers running game, they don't have the quarterback or the firepower to come from behind against a tough defense. Of course that's easier said than done, but the Seahawks are the type of team that was built to stop teams like the
The bad news, as far as this game is concerned, is that most of the Seahawks success so far this season has come at home. They are 1-2 on the road and 0-2 on the road in the division. Granted, they won their last road game at Carolina and have had a shot to win all 3 but failed to execute in Arizona and St. Louis. This is still a major test for such a young team and they'll have to prove that they can bounce back on short rest and win their toughest road game of the season. San Fran is going to be super charged up for this one and will be looking to wipe that bad taste out of their mouths against a division rival on primetime.
Normally this isn't the ideal situation that you'd want the Seahawks to be in. However, this time things feel different. It's true that Russell Wilson and the offense will see a much tougher defensive task tomorrow night. I certainly don't expect 3 bombs of 46 yards or more this week, but I hope that the offense continues to open it up. They'll have to play extremely smart since the 49ers ravenous defense will be looking to take advantage of any Seahawk mistakes but keep in mind that nearly this exact same team beat the 49ers with Tarvaris Jackson at the helm last season in December. With all due respect to Tarvaris and the job he did in Seattle, I feel that we can reasonably expect improvement in that area for this game. Here's some other key things to keep an eye an out for as the Seahawks
- Alex Smith looks like Ryan Gosling. If there were a documentary about mediocre 1st round, 8 year project quarterbacks then Gosling would definitely play Smith. Having said that, Smith has played well against Seattle of late. In the past he's offered just enough with his wheels to keep the Seahawks defense off balance. However, this defense is much faster than any Seahawks defense Smith has faced in the past. They are also vicious open field hitters/tacklers and sometimes play past the whistle. Smith is already nursing an injured finger and play a miserable game against the Giants defense. Let's get to him early and often and take him out of this one early. Remember that sack Rocky Bernard had on Alex? Good, me too. I bet Smith does as well.
- Can the 'Hawks duplicate their success from last season against Frank Gore? They'll have to in order to jump on the 49ers early. I'm almost more worried about Kendall Hunter than I am of Gore. Gore used to destroy us but Hunter is the type of shifty scatback that the Seahawks tend to struggle with but this defense is different than any defense we've had in the past. In the past the 49ers have lined up in run heavy formations with extra linemen in order to jam the ball down the Seahawks throats. We've even seen DT Isaac Sopoaga line up at fullback in goal line situations. On the flip side, Mebane and Branch are having incredible years and we've seen how stout Bryant and even Clemons can be against the run. Gonna be my favorite part of watching this game, watching the play in the trenches. Should be absolutely nasty.
- I'd say that K.J. Wright and Bobby Wagner are lookin like our version of NaVorro Bowman and Patrick Willis, in their own unique way. They might not be there just yet, but the potential is there for them to be just as good in my opinion.
- DO NOT RETALIATE! We all know that NFL refs are famous for seeing the second man retaliate after missing the original cheapshot. There are definitely going to be some "altercations" in this one. I fully expect to hear the announcers talk about how vicious and heated the teams are and how they've got to "settle down." "Chippy" will be used to describe this game numerous times, get ready for it. The Hawks can get ready for this by taking a look at Richard Sherman's tape from the Carolina game. There were numerous times where Steve Smith should've rightfully been called for a personal foul or offensive pass interference. I'm glad they weren't called because to me it was just two competitors goin at it, but the key was that Sherman never fell for Smith's antics. Now, if someone takes a cheap shot at Russell or Marshawn that's a different story. Send Giacomini after em and take the 15! This team don't let shit fly.
- Turbin Time! I expect both teams to try and establish the run and grind it out to victory. The 49ers more so than the Seahawks actually. That's why I hope that Robert Turbin gets a few more touches in this one. He's shown reliable hands catching passes out of the backfield and showed that he can lower the boom in the St. Louis game. Marshawn just took a beating against New England and while I know that he'll bring his A-Game to Candlestick it's important that Turbin do the same. We're going to see a mix of Gore, Hunter, and Jacobs all night long. Hopefully Turbin gets in to the mix as well.
- Continue to stretch the field. We've seen Sidney, Tate, Baldwin, and even Zach Miller show the ability to stretch opposing defenses. This is a crucial element for this offense as it gives them much needed balance. We saw some of the guys on offense talk about finally opening up the offense, this is something that has to continue. I expect it'll get dialed down a bit for the 49ers game but they've got to try and stretch the field consistently throughout the game.
- Doug Baldwin broke out against his former college coach in the opener last season. He also scored against them in the home game in Seattle. Baldwin's a determined dude. You know he just loves playing his ex college coach who passed over him in the NFL and would love nothing more than to stick it to him, again. Same goes for Tricky Dick Sherman.
- This would be an excellent time to see Kam Chancellor have his signature hit for the 2012 season. Vernon Davis would be an excellent target. Just sayin.
- Get ready for a streetfight and another nailbiter. Luckily, this team is getting pretty good at those. I get the feeling that Harbaugh is going to want to prove that he can execute his gameplan against the Seahawks will. For some reason, I feel that the Niners still feel that they are leaps and bounds more physical and tougher than their foes from the Pacific Northwest. I hope that this is the case at least, because Seattle will certainly show them otherwise.
- Let's hope the Niners break out Colin Kaepernick, the Pistol, and the Option. We saw how Brandon Browner and the boys feasted on Cam Newton when he ran the option. Kaepernick is quicker than Newton, but not as good a runner as Cam.
- Sherman v. Moss should be great. Of course, San Francisco could try and isolate Moss on Browner but Brandon's press coverage skills might have something to say about that. I can't wait to see Ringworm get in Moss' face! In general, the 49ers receivers don't scare me much. Hopefully Tru bounces back after the Pats game and has a solid game out of the slot. Also, let's try and not let Michael Crabtree look like he's back at Texas Tech this time.
- Bring the pain!
I think the Seahawks stand a fighting chance in this one. A big road win wouldn't surprise me and would do wonders for that division record. The 49ers are going to be pissed after being humiliated at home by the Giants but that doesn't mean the Seahawks are just going to roll over and let them take this one. They've got this magical ability to do the unexpected, especially when they're underdogs. The game's opening line? San Fran favored by 7. I prefer the Seahawks be the underdog really. That's where they seem to do the most damage. Regardless, you can bet that the team has had this game circled on the calendar for a while now.
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