49ers lose a bad one to Seattle: Rapid reactions

The San Francisco 49ers are a mess. Their offense is inconsistent, their defense can't hold onto leads, and their special teams are a disaster. They're a bad team right now.

The 49ers lost an ugly game to the Seattle Seahawks, 20-17. Yes, at home, they only scored 17 points against a bad defense. San Francisco is now 5-5 on the season, and their playoff hopes are fading, especially with their toughest games coming up.


Here are my rapid reactions to the game. These are my live reactions as things unfolded. This should be fun.

• No George Kittle today. Will that be a problem—especially for a team struggling to score touchdowns in the red zone? (Update: it was a massive problem.)
• A three-and-out isn't the way we wanted the offense to start.
• If the 49ers can't stop the Seattle run game, they might lose this game. We'll see how that goes.
• Nice work by Dee Winters covering D.K. Metcalf.

• Great to see Nick Bosa and Leonard Floyd get to Geno Smith early. They need to make him uncomfortable today.

• Feed Jordan Mason! Why isn't he getting more carries? Christian McCaffrey is clearly not himself at this point. Give Mason more touches.
• That was an excellent drive for Brock Purdy and the 49ers. He was four for four and they even scored a touchdown in the red zone.
• Jauan Jennings is already dominating, by the way. He has four catches in the first quarter.
• Purdy was not good on the next drive. He just threw an interception that gave Seattle great field position.

• Yetur Gross-Matos with a big sack. That's his first as a member of the 49ers.

• Another special teams mistake. This time it was a Mason fumble that took a fortunate bounce out of bounds.
• So far, the 49ers cannot run the ball with McCaffrey.
• The 49ers are beating themselves yet again. So many mistakes.
• Jennings makes up for the holding penalty with a big third-down catch.
• Solid first half for the 49ers' defense. Not so much for the offense. I guess Kittle is important.
• Isaac Yiadom with a big interception to start the second half.

• I don't think Kittle has to worry about Eric Saubert taking any snaps from him. He's not good.
• Aaron Banks is having a terrible game. He hasn't been that good previously during the season either. He's likely playing his final games with this team.
• The 49ers continue to shoot themselves in the foot. They're just not very good this year.
• Jake Moody hits his first field goal attempt since making the game-winner a week ago. Good for him.
• Bosa with his second sack, but it looks like he aggravated that hip injury.
• Now, all of a sudden, the defense is playing poorly. That's the problem with the offense not scoring. The defense can't carry the team all game.
• I'm old enough to remember when Deebo Samuel would break tackles each time he touched the ball. He hasn't done that this season.
• Jennings is so good! He might be my favorite player.

• And Purdy is pretty good, too.
• Jake Brendel is terrible. He's out there doing what he does best—killing drives.
• Jennings again. He's unreal.

• What a huge defensive stand by the 49ers.

• Unfortunately, the 49ers offense couldn't close it out. So now the defense has to try.
• The 49ers defense is getting very little pass rush without Bosa.
• Ricky Pearsall was shut out in this game. He had no catches. I realize he's a rookie and has been through a lot, but the 49ers need their first-round draft pick to step up.

The defense couldn't hold and the 49ers lost the game to a terrible Seahawks team. San Francisco has now wasted Jennings' best two games as a pro (three if you count the Super Bowl). They'll likely lose in Green Bay and Buffalo. And this loss makes their postseason hopes slim. Next up for the sloppy 49ers is a trip to face the Packers.

More San Francisco 49ers News

• Purdy vs. Seattle: A Major Prove-It Opportunity for the 49ers Quarterback

  Last Sunday night's mostly defense-optional showdown gave us a play that belongs in the Canton, Ohio vault of NFL highlights. Brock Purdy faked the handoff, rolled left, and suddenly had Austin Booker and the very spherical Andrew Billings chasing him like Labradors after...
  Read Article

• Only one 49ers player named to Barnwell's 2025 NFL All-Pro team

  ESPN's Bill Barnwell released his 2025 NFL All-Pro team, and only one San Francisco 49ers player earned a spot: veteran left tackle Trent Williams (first-team roster). Helping Williams' cause was his ability to stay healthy this season—mostly. The All-Pro suffered a...
  Read Article

• Recap: 49ers dominated by Seahawks defense, fall 13-3 in battle for number one seed

  No NFL offense was hotter than the San Francisco 49ers coming into their season finale showdown against the Seattle Seahawks at Levi's Stadium on Saturday night, but what looked like an irresistible force before the game came up empty when they ran into an immovable object in...
  Read Article

• 49ers Must Embrace the Hard Way After Week 18 Dud

  For weeks, the San Francisco 49ers have been living close to the edge, relying on narrow wins and late-game execution to stay in the hunt for the NFC's top seed. On Saturday night at Levi's Stadium, that margin finally disappeared. The 13–3 loss to the Seattle Seahawks...
  Read Article