Kyle Shanahan turns Seahawks trash talk into motivation for 49ers playoff push

A trip to the NFC Championship Game should be motivation enough for the San Francisco 49ers as they prepare for Saturday night's Divisional Round playoff matchup against the Seattle Seahawks. But just in case, head coach Kyle Shanahan made sure his team had a little extra fuel this week.

During ESPN's Postseason NFL Countdown, reporter Lindsey Thiry revealed that Shanahan provided his players with some well-timed bulletin-board material ahead of the NFC West postseason showdown.

"Kyle Shanahan always finds a little extra motivation when the moment calls for it," Thiry said. "This week, he did not have to look far for that motivation. In a team meeting leading to tonight's Divisional game. He went back to Week 18, the Niners lost to the Seahawks, and he put together a little Instagram super cut ... Seahawks players dancing with cigars [in the guest locker room at Levi's Stadium]."

According to fullback Kyle Juszczyk, the message hit home.

"Kyle Juszczyk tells me, 'He showed us their Instagram posts [showing them] crapping on us, really, like they had just won the Super Bowl,'" Thiry said. "He says it worked. It was really good bulletin board material. Kyle Juszczyk telling me he's (Shanahan) been doing this for a long time. That hit home, that is extra motivation—as though the Niners needed any."

H/t Taylor Wirth of NBC Sports Bay Area for the find.

Shanahan's tactic comes after several Seahawks players took verbal—and social media—shots at the 49ers in recent weeks.

After that game, Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba offered a subtle postgame response to cornerback Deommodore Lenoir, who had said he hoped to shadow Smith-Njigba during the matchup.

"I definitely heard it," Smith-Njigba said. "It's hard to respond back to all my fans."

Following the 49ers' Wild Card victory over the Philadelphia Eagles, Seahawks linebacker Uchenna Nwosu also chimed in, commenting on an Instagram post from All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner, who celebrated his team staying alive.

"The road ends here brother," Nwosu commented to Warner.

Seahawks defensive tackle Jarran Reed was even more direct when discussing the opportunity to face San Francisco for a third time this season.

"For one, we get a team that we don't like," Reed told reporters. "Me personally, I don't like nothing about them. But just get a chance to go at them again. We don't do too much talking. We let our pads talk, but we know what's at stake; they know what's at stake.

"We know it's about getting out there between them lines and hitting it head-on. Man on man. Mano y mano."

The latest chapter of the 49ers–Seahawks rivalry will unfold Saturday night at Lumen Field, with kickoff set for 5 p.m. PT.