Niners Magical Season comes to an early End

Since the start of the Super Bowl era, no team has ever won road games in four consecutive weeks and on Sunday, the defending NFC Champion San Francisco 49ers had a chance to become the first. Having prided themselves as the league's best road team over the last month, Jim Harbaugh and company took a stroll to the one place he's had the least success -- Seattle's CenturyLink Field where they'd face off with the division rival Seahawks for the NFC crown. And though Seattle is known as the home of the '12th Man', the crowd was virtually sucked out of the game for much of the first half and was caught by surprise on the first play of the game. From hard hits to poor officiating, big plays to drama and everything in between, this game would have it all and would be everything one could possibly ask for in a championship game. With the 49ers winning the coin toss and electing to defer, Seattle took over on offense to start the game. Or at least they would try as Aldon Smith got to Seahawks QB Russell Wilson on the opening play, forcing and recovering a fumble.

With the intensity the 49er defense opened the game with, you would've thought San Francisco was the home team to start. But like Seattle's offense that was shaky to start, the crowd would eventually make their presence felt as the 49ers were only able to turn Wilson's early miscue into a field goal. Two drives later, however, San Francisco would put together the drive they've been longing for and were unable to accomplish in their earlier meeting in Seattle this season. With running back Frank Gore virtually a non-factor and Kaepernick's options through the air on lock down virtually all game long by Seattle's top-ranked defense, the speedy QB was forced to take matters into his own hands on a number of occasions with his feet. A 58-yard run by Kaepernick to start the second quarter would put him over the 100-yard mark, making him the first player since Thurman Thomas (1994) to compile 100+ rush yards in the first half of a championship game. It would be the longest rush by a QB in NFL postseason history as well as the longest rush allowed by Seattle all season.

The big gain would set up Anthony Dixon who on fourth down leaped over the defense and into the end zone from a yard out to give San Francisco a 10-0 lead. It would cost them, however, as Pro Bowl guard Mike Iupati would leave the game with a broken fibula on the play. His loss would be detrimental as Kaepernick and the 49ers deserted the run game in the second half. The Seahawks would respond by finally getting on the board before the end of the first half as Russell Wilson scrambled in and out of the pocket before firing a 51-yard pass to receiver Doug Baldwin, setting up Steven Hauschka for the 32-yard field goal to cut the deficit. While it was the 49ers who opened the game as the aggressor, it would be Seattle who would strike first in the second half as Marshawn Lynch better known as "Best Mode" would get his first dose of Skittles as he torched the 49er defense for a 40-yard touchdown run, tying the game at 10. Similar to Seattle who allowed their biggest run of the season earlier in the game to Kaepernick, the 40-yard run by Lynch would be the longest rush allowed by the 49ers since the start of the Harbaugh era in 2011.

That wouldn't prevent the 49er offense from answering right back as Kaepernick aired out one of the more impressive passes of the season when he made a leaping toss into the end zone where he found Anquan Boldin from 26 yards out for the touchdown. But poor execution on the ensuing kick by the 49er special-teams which had been stellar all day up to that point, would allow a 69-yard return to Seahawks kick returner Doug Baldwin as Seattle walked away with another Haushka field goal to make it a 17-13 ballgame. After a 49er three and out, Seattle would benefit from a blown call late in the third quarter when San Francisco kicker Andy Lee was hit on his plant leg while punting. What should have been a 15 yard roughing the kicker penalty that would've gave San Francisco the first down, was instead called a 5 yard running into the kicker penalty. A call that would prove to be costly as Seattle scored the go-ahead touchdown just moments later. On fourth and seven, Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll would elect to go for it, a gutsy decision that would pay off as Russell Wilson capitalized on an offsides penalty by Aldon Smith, turning a free-play into the go-ahead touchdown as Jermaine Kearse made a leaping grab in traffic from 35 yards out.

What was an ugly fourth quarter for the 49ers to start would only get worse as Kaepernick was sacked and stripped of the ball by Seattle's Cliff Avril on their ensuing possession, recovered by the Seahawks. The first of three straight fourth quarter possessions plagued by turnover. A crucial delay of game penalty would turn a third and one opportunity into third and six which would've most likely prevented the fumble. With Seattle threatening to score starring down the end zone inside the 10, the 49ers would witness their star linebacker in NaVorro Bowman sustain a gruesome injury to his left knee after stripping the ball away from Kearse. Despite clearly gaining full possession of the ball, Seattle was awarded the ball back as the play was non-reviewable. Bowman would have to be carted off the field where a handful of fans showered him with popcorn on his way to the locker room. Having to play without their best player on defense, the 49ers would catch a break on the following play as a botched hand-off attempt from Wilson to Lynch would result in a turnover on downs. 

The 49ers would give it right back, however, as Kaepernick's pass intended for Boldin was picked off by Kam Chancellor which Seattle turned into another field goal. Trailing 23-17 with 3:37 remaining and all three timeouts left, the fate of San Francisco's season would lie in the hands of their starting quarterback and one final drive. Starting at their own 22 yard line, the 49ers would march all the way down to the Seattle 18. But with 30 seconds remaining and the clock still ticking despite coach Harbaugh having two timeouts to play with, Kaepernick's late game heroics would come to a screeching halt as a would-be game-winning touchdown pass intended for Michael Crabtree was tipped by Seahawks corner Richard Sherman and intercepted by Malcolm Smith, sealing the win and sending Seattle to only their second Super Bowl in franchise history. Kaepernick who took blame for the loss during his postgame interview, threw for 153 yards and a touchdown and added another 130 yards on the ground, but combined for three turnovers on the day, all coming in the last 11 minutes of the fourth quarter as San Francisco lost its second NFC Championship in three years and first game in over two months. 

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