49ers 27 - Seahawks 37: Doom?
The 49ers get walloped in a ugly loss to a divisional rival - and a game that the 49ers had to win to keep their playoff chances likely. Now, they must make it up with the odds stacked against them.
(Seattle, WA) - I’ve started off articles way too much with this line, but this… was absolutely brutal. The 49ers got destroyed in one of the most important games of this season and all seems to be falling in 49ers land. And rightfully so.
The Seahawks, who have the worst passing defense and the worst defense in football as a whole, were missing their best corner, their best slot corner, and their best defensive player in Jamal Adams today. They were also missing their top two RBs.
While the 49ers had a much higher amount of injuries, this was a winnable game. But from the very beginning, it was clear this game would not go the same way as the Patriots or Rams games. Seattle’s LBs and the entire defense was ready for the screen heavy game that Garoppolo runs under Kyle Shanahan, and it cost us big time.
Seattle, with all their defensive injuries and also being statistically the worst defense in football held the 49ers under Garoppolo, at least til Mullens came in, to just around a 100 yards - midway through the third. This is not the Legion of Boom, this is the worst defense in the NFL - that was simply not going to work, especially when their offense is one of the best in the league.
Jimmy Garoppolo was abysmal. And the question remains to be seen: if the ankle injury was affecting his play that bad, why was he on the field? Despite Mullens’ garbage time antics that actually brought the 49ers to within 10 points, Garoppolo should remain as the starter. But for every game that passes by with this level of play, his leash gets shorter and shorter. If the ankle injury was that bad, why did he play the past two weeks just fine?
And the bigger question is: if Shanahan is indeed protecting Garoppolo with his gameplan, when do the 49ers realize that limits the offense? George Kittle, the best TE in football, had two catches. Two. Just 4 targets. Why in god’s name is Jerick McKinnon, Ross Dwelley, Kendrick Bourne, Trent Taylor - WHY are they getting as many or more targets as George Kittle?! This game is not only on Jimmy although most of the blame is warranted. Obviously, the 49ers have endured an incredible amount of injuries and it’s not anyone’s fault. But this game was supposed to be competitive, and it flat out was not. That falls upon the QB and the head coach.
The 49ers held Seattle to under 30 for most of the game - this is the best offense in football by every metric. That’s a good mark for a defense that was not helped out by its offense one bit. Fred Warner was dominant, as was K’Waun Williams who made his return. But the one player the 49ers had to stop: DK Metcalf? They were not able to even affect him. Metcalf torched the 49ers secondary, supposedly part of a top 10 defense as it was touted by many earlier this week, with 161 yards on 2 TDs.
Kyle Shanahan’s gameplan was ugly. We know what the Seahawks v. 49ers rivalry is. It’s a physical brand of football, and the Seahawks, not the 49ers who decided to get cute, won the battle in the trenches. Russell Wilson was not affected for most of the game, and even when he was, his legs gave him the ability to escape and make plays. Marcell Harris, Jimmie Ward were terrible, taking bad angles on deep throws, even as Emmanuel Moseley and others played in good coverage.
But instead of helping out his defense, Kyle Shanahan hung them out to dry with his gameplan. Not feeding Aiyuk and Kittle for most of the game, at least until Nick Mullens entered the game is a travesty against the worst passing defense in the league. I understand that this is a tight-knit team and targets need to go to everyone, but man… the best TE in the game had 4 targets. That right there, is why the 49ers lost. Feed your best players. Without threatening the Seahawks deep, they were ready for the short passing game and screens. Bobby Wagner who many called declining before this game - had 11 tackles, 3 TFLs, 4 QB hits, and 2 sacks. DJ Reed Jr, the former 49er, had his best game as a pro. The 49ers were not able to match Seattle’s offensive output, and that’s what killed them in the end.
Now, they travel back home to play the Packers and a pissed-off Aaron Rodgers on Thursday Night Football, likely without Garoppolo, Kittle, Mostert, Samuel, and more. Thursday could become a bloodbath. And with how competitive the NFC West is, this game had massive implications for the playoffs. The 49ers have two wins left on their schedule, guaranteed - in Dallas and in Washington. I’m not confident they can defeat any of the Packers, Saints, Bills, Seahawks, Cardinals, or the Rams, even when healthy. The 49ers needed a good gameplan and good Jimmy Garoppolo, and they didn’t get either.
Donte Whitner put it best after the game with regards to Jimmy Garoppolo’s performance.
Seattle tried to make Jimmy beat them with his arm, which he should have been able to do against the worst defense in football - the 49ers complied. Instead, it backfired completely on the 49ers. And don’t let the rest of the team get off scot-free. JaMycal Hasty was terrible. Dante Pettis is done on the team. I get that he was trying to show he was not soft, but that fumble was brutal and it marks the end of his 49ers career in all likelihood. Jerick McKinnon had -3 rushing yards.
The 49ers didn’t go injury-free. Garoppolo exited the game with an ankle injury, but that likely has more to do with his play than his injury. George Kittle exited the game with an ankle injury which needs to be monitored. Tevin Coleman reaggravated his knee injury and is a candidate for another short-term IR spot.
The bottom line is, San Francisco needed to continue their streak of winning today, and they instead lost in the worst way - and with a short week against Aaron Rodgers, with no signature pass rush to stop him, Thursday could be just as ugly.
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What do we do at QB now? Trade for another one? Draft?
Russell Wilson knows exactly what to do with Saleh's scheme, mostly because RW practices against it every day. He knew Metcalf would be open whenever he looked his way. No complex coverage alternatives were thrown in to confuse Seattle's relentless marches down the field. You'd think in his fourth year Saleh would be cribbing some of the more innovative disruptive ideas from Martindale-Belichick-Schultz-Flores, but he stubbornly sticks to his predictable formula. (And yes, RS had some fourth-stringers out there and Marcell Harris too, but all the more reason for different looks--even Vance Joseph messed with RW's head!) Because Saleh has had success this year with his (tired?) scheme against novices like Darnold, Goff, and D. Jones, RS thinks it somehow wise to stick with it, with no major adjustments, against a more savvy presence like RW. Dear god, what will Aaron Rodgers do against this scheme he knows so well (last year's playoff game being an exception with Bosa and Co. at virtually full strength)?
And KS' gameplan today couldn't have been more screamingly pedestrian, and the Hawks were ready to slap down with prejudice the nibbling remedial playcalling tenderly designed for mid-injury JimmyG. Protecting JG'a ankle, and phobias for throwing deep/sideline/tight windows, merely emboldened Wagner and the boys to almost casually snuff out the insipid gameplan.