Niners lose third straight, Fall short of Playoffs

After being embarrassed in their own house two weeks ago on Thanksgiving night, the San Francisco 49ers had revenge in mind heading into Sunday's road meeting versus the archrival Seahawks. But with the game taking place at Seattle's Century Link Field which has been none too polite to the Niners over the last few seasons, and San Francisco's playoff hopes hanging in the balance, Jim Harbaugh's team welcomed the challenge. Having been beat down in each of their last two regular season meetings at Seattle, the 49ers had plenty of fight in them in what would be a sloppy first half for both sides.

With Seattle taking a 3-0 lead on a Steven Hauschka field goal, a gutsy 4th and 1 call early in the second quarter would pay dividends for Harbaugh and the Niners as running back Frank Gore picked up the first down and then some, plowing into the end zone to give San Francisco a 7-3 lead which they would take into the half. Looking to answer before heading to halftime, Seattle QB Russell Wilson marched his team down the field and into field goal range, but overthrew his receiver as 49ers safety Eric Reid came up with the interception and nearly took it to the house with time expiring before running out of room to run. A pick-six would've done wonders for the 49ers who couldn't get anything going and were shutout in the second half. Though Colin Kaepernick managed to play a turnover-free ballgame, while throwing for 141 yards and rushing for another 46, it wouldn't be enough to edge out a victory.

Suffering from a depleted offensive-line missing two starters in Anthony Davis and Marcus Martin, the 49ers were unable to contain Seattle's defense as the most sacked quarterback in the league was taken down another six times on Sunday. Furthermore, the Niner offense was held to just 67 yards in the second half. And where San Francisco struggled, Seattle excelled, scoring touchdowns on back to back drives in the third and fourth quarters. But with the 49ers still alive late in the game, something they haven't been able to say in each of their past two regular season meetings in Seattle, a controversial call would spell doom for the visiting team. Leading 10-7 in the fourth quarter, the Seahawks would benefit from a bogus roughing the passer penalty on third down which gave Seattle a new set of downs inside the 10-yard line. The call would be reminiscent of the horrendous roughing the passer penalty called on Ahmad Brooks' sack of Drew Brees in New Orleans last year and would help assist the Seahawks in scoring the game-sealing touchdown two plays later, making it a 17-7 game instead of 13-7 had Seattle kicked a field goal. 

With San Francisco down to their third-string running back as Frank Gore and Carlos Hyde were each ruled out with an injury before the start of the fourth quarter, the Niners never had a chance of pulling off the comeback and ultimately fell, 17-7, eliminating them from playoff contention. Dropping to 7-7 on the year, the loss marks the first three-game losing-streak since the start of the Harbaugh era. Meanwhile, Seattle improves to 10-4 and remains very much alive in the race for the NFC West. Standing at 11-3 with the NFL's best record, the Arizona Cardinals still hold a 1-game lead in the division and host Seattle next week in a game that will most likely decide who wins the West. 

Week 16 Preview: Despite being eliminated from playoff contention, the Niners are looking to close the season strong as they hope to finish the season with a winning record. And with a win on the road this Saturday, the 49ers could at least guarantee themselves a .500 record. But they'll be facing an 8-6 San Diego Chargers team that hopes to keep their own playoff hopes alive with a win. Experiencing a two-game skid of their own, Chargers QB Philip Rivers will have to play with a win or go home mentality with the Denver Broncos having already clinched the AFC Western division and a Wild Card berth still in reach. But with the 49ers holding opposing quarterbacks to a stingy 156 passing yards at Home this season, Rivers might be in for a long night, not to mention he'll be without his best receiver in Kennan Allen who's sidelined with an injury. 


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