SAN FRANCISCO
Lee Heidhues 1.5.2026
All the sports reporting are heaping praise on the Seattle Seahawks performance at Levi’s Stadium. The reality is that the San Francisco 49ers could have and should have prevailed on Saturday night.
It was painful to watch on Saturday night. Granted, the 49ers have suffered injuries this season. All of which would have sacked any chance the Niners had to reach the penultimate game with a surprising 12-4 record. And looking to have the top record in the National Football Conference.
It was not to be. A series of miscues and missed opportunities sent the locals limping off the field at game’s end. Most definitely not looking forward to a cross country trip. Meeting the Philadelphia Eagles next Sunday afternoon.
Excerpted from The Athletic 1.4.2026
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — It was a miracle the San Francisco 49ers trailed only 10-0, and not 20-0, midway through the second quarter Saturday night. But it turns out that it didn’t matter — 10 points was more than enough for the Seattle Seahawks.
In a game that determined home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs, the Seahawks came into Levi’s Stadium and put their feet on the couch. The final score, 13-3, did not indicate the game’s one-sidedness, but the Seahawks’ rushing output — which more than tripled that of the 49ers (180-53) — sure did.
“The 49ers have been scoring at will,” Seahawks linebacker Ernest Jones IV said. “We know our style of play. Let’s go out there and see what they have.”
San Francisco finished with 173 yards of offense, its fewest in a regular-season game in Shanahan’s nine years as coach (they had 164 in the 2022 NFC title game).
Top photo: San Francisco 49ers’ Yetur Gross-Matos fails to recover Seattle Seahawks’ fumble in 3rd quarter during Niners’ 13-3 loss in NFL game at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on Saturday, January 3, 2026.Scott Strazzante/S.F. Chronicle
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