49ers put on second half rout against Seahawks in 41-23 Wild Card round win

After getting a stiff fight from the Seattle Seahawks in the first half of Saturday's Wild Card game at Levi's Stadium, the San Francisco 49ers proved they were the only Super Bowl contender in the NFC West this season, pulling away from their division rival for a 41-23 win.

The 49ers trailed the Seahawks at halftime but blew the game open in the second half, scoring 25 unanswered points en route to a blowout win. 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy finished with 332 yards on 18-of-30 passing with three touchdowns to go with one rushing touchdown, while Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith completed 25-of-35 passes for 253 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.

First Half

The defense set the tone early for the 49ers, who held the Seahawks to a three-and-out on the game's opening possession due in large part to a third down sack by defensive lineman Arik Armstead. The 49ers then put together a seven-play, 48-yard drive on their first possession that included 29 rushing yards from Deebo Samuel but settled for a 34-yard field goal from kicker Robbie Gould after the drive fizzled inside the 20-yard line.

Another three-and-out followed the field goal, then the 49ers found themselves back in business in a hurry on offense after a 68-yard run from Christian McCaffrey on the first play of their second possession. Four plays later, Purdy hooked up with McCaffrey through the air from three yards out after avoiding the Seahawks' pass rush to give the 49ers their first touchdown of the game and a 10-0 lead.

After dominating the Seahawks in the early going, the 49ers' defense started to show some holes over the remainder of the first half. The Seahawks were able to stop the bleeding on their next possession, putting together a 14-play, 78-yard drive that culminated with a seven-yard touchdown run by Kenneth Walker. The drive took nearly seven minutes off the clock and stretched early into the second quarter before Walker strolled in on a 1st-and-Goal play to cut the 49ers' lead to 10-7.

The 49ers answered with a lengthy drive of their own, a 10-play, 60-yard possession that took over five minutes off the clock that only resulted in a field goal after the Seahawks stiffened on defense in the red zone. The 49ers faced a 2nd-and-9 from the 12-yard line when linebacker Bruce Irvin took Purdy down for a sack and an 8-yard loss, which put the 49ers in a hole too big to dig out of on third down.

The Seahawks continued to build momentum on their next possession, answering their clock-eating touchdown drive with a splash play that burned the 49ers deep. On the fifth play of the possession, the Seahawks faced a 3rd-and-3 from midfield when Smith went downfield to wide receiver D.K. Metcalf, who got behind cornerback Charvarius Ward for a 50-yard touchdown. The catch gave the Seahawks a 14-13 lead with 5:01 remaining in the half.

The 49ers were held to their first three-and-out of the game after Metcalf's touchdown, but the defense got back on the right track by forcing a punt with just over a minute remaining. The 49ers took over at their own 23-yard line and put together an eight-play, 49-yard drive to take the lead on a 46-yard field goal from Gould with 13 seconds left in the half, but a big mistake by defensive back Jimmie Ward allowed the Seahawks to take the lead into the break. The Seahawks started their final possession of the half at their own 38-yard line with nine seconds on the clock, then Ward was flagged for unnecessary roughness for hitting Smith late on a nine-yard run. The penalty put the Seahawks into field goal range for kicker Jason Myers, who connected from 56 yards out as time expired to give the Seahawks a 17-16 halftime lead.

The 49ers finished the half with an edge in yardage (249 to 176) and first downs (11-10) but converted just one of five opportunities on third downs while allowing the Seahawks to convert four of seven. Smith finished the half with 104 yards and one touchdown on 9-of-10 passing, while Purdy completed 9-of-19 passes for 147 yards and one touchdown.

Second Half

The 49ers got the start they wanted on their first possession of the second half, putting together a 13-play, 75-yard drive to take a 23-17 lead on a one-yard run from Purdy. Ten of the 13 plays on the drive were runs, with three successful conversions on third down, one of them on a 21-yard completion to Samuel. The drive took 7:45 off the clock, marking the longest drive of the season for the 49ers.

The next possession ended with a play that proved to be the turning point that shifted a close game into a one-sided affair. The Seahawks moved inside the 49ers' 20 and appeared to be heading towards putting points on the board, but a strip sack by defensive lineman Charles Omenihu on a 3rd-and-14 play gave the 49ers the ball at their own 30-yard line following a recovery by defensive end Nick Bosa. The turnover was the first of the game from either team and was the beginning of the end for the Seahawks, who quickly unraveled from there.

The 49ers put together a seven-play, 70-yard drive after the turnover that was capped by a highlight touchdown pass from Purdy to running back Elijah Mitchell. After a key 33-yard completion to wide receiver Jauan Jennings that gave the 49ers a 1st-and-Goal, Purdy escaped pressure on second down and dumped the ball off to Mitchell, who ran in untouched for a 29-17 lead. Purdy completed a two-point conversion attempt to tight end George Kittle after the touchdown to give the 49ers a 31-17 lead.

The Seahawks punted back to the 49ers after a possession that saw them get penalized three times in four plays, then Deebo Samuel put the game out of reach. After catching a two-yard pass on a 1st-and-10 from the 49ers' 24-yard line, Samuel took a pass from Purdy and sprinted down the sideline for a 74-yard score, giving the 49ers a 38-17 lead with just under 11 minutes remaining.

The bad news kept coming for the Seahawks on the next possession when Smith was picked off on first down by cornerback Deommodore Lenoir. The 49ers ran almost six minutes off the clock from there with a 10-play, 24-yard drive and stretched their lead to 41-17 after a 31-yard field goal from Gould.

The Seahawks added a late touchdown on a three-yard pass to Metcalf to cut the lead to 41-23 with less than two minutes remaining. The 49ers recovered an onsides kick attempt after the touchdown and ran out the clock to seal the win.

The win was the eleventh in a row for the 49ers, who will be hosts in next weekend's Divisional Round against a to-be-determined opponent. The Seahawks finish the season with a 9-9 overall record after making the playoffs as a seven-seed.

Game Notes: The win gives the 49ers a 36-23 all-time playoff record, while the Seahawks fell to 17-19... The 49ers and Seahawks previously met in the postseason during the 2013 NFC Championship game, a game won by the Seahawks 23-17... Per Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area, McCaffrey's 68-yard run was the third longest postseason run in franchise history behind an 80-yard run by Roger Craig against Minnesota in 1989 and a 71-yard run by Hugh McElhenney against Detroit in 1957... According to NFL research, Metcalf's second quarter touchdown tied him with Randy Moss for the second-most postseason touchdown receptions (three) of 50 or more yards in NFL history, trailing only John Stallworth (four)... Purdy became the second rookie in the Super Bowl era to notch a passing touchdown and a rushing touchdown in a postseason game (Russell Wilson, 2012).

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