5 things that absolutely must happen for Seahawks to beat 49ers in Week 11

The Seattle Seahawks are 1-5 over their last six games, and the vibes are not great. On the flip side, the San Francisco 49ers are now a game over .500 and only a game out of first place in the division, behind the red-hot Arizona Cardinals. Both Seattle and San Francisco could really use a win on Sunday, but if recent history is any indication, it'll be a steep hill to climb for Seattle.

In the two teams' last six meetings, the Niners hold a 6-0 record against the Seahawks. To put that into perspective, the Seahawks' last win over the 49ers was in December of 2021. Seattle had Russell Wilson under center, and the Niners strutted out good ole Jimmy Garoppolo in a 30-23 victory. Jimmy Graham scored a touchdown in that game!

The 4-5 Seahawks will enter Levi's Stadium in complete desperation mode. The 5-4 Niners do look beatable this season, but they've been Seattle's Kryptonite for the better part of a decade now. If Seattle wants to get back on track this season and snap the six-game losing streak to Kyle Shanahan's 49ers, many things must go right for Seattle.

Five things the Seattle Seahawks need to accomplish against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 11

Establish the dang run

In the two teams' last meeting on October 10, Geno Smith attempted 52 passes. Star running back Kenneth Walker III only had 14 carries for 32 yards. That's disgusting. Teams that have beaten the 49ers this year have run the ball down their throat, which subsequently opened up the passing game.

This Seahawks offense is not built to throw the ball 50+ times per game - the offensive line is not good enough to hold up for that long. Seattle used several early draft picks to establish the run, between two second-round running backs and multiple offensive linemen who were drafted for their run-block prowess.

Ryan Grubb really needs to settle into his playcalling role and get a good feel on when to run the ball, and when to open up the playbook. Too many times this season, it's felt like Grubb has been spamming the run when it's not working and abandoning the run when it is working. That's just what you're going to get from a rookie offensive coordinator. But Sunday would be a very good time to finally figure it out.

Seahawks need to stop the dang run

On the other side of the equation, the Seattle defense will have its hands full with a 49ers offense that just recently got Christian McCaffrey back. In their first meeting, the Niners had no McCaffrey and no Jordan Mason for half the game. They still ran all over Seattle for sixty minutes.

Fortunately for Seattle, McCaffrey appears to still be recovering and doesn't look up to full speed yet. However, Seattle is now without the two top off-ball linebackers they started the season with - Jerome Baker and Tyrel Dodson. Linebacker Ernest Jones appears to be acclimating well with Seattle and figures to be an every-down backer for the remainder of the season, along with impressive rookie Tyrice Knight. Perhaps with two different linebackers, Seattle can slow down the Niners' rushing attack, which gashed them only four weeks ago.

Give Geno Smith just the slightest pocket

It's no secret the Seahawks have one of if not the worst offensive lines in football. We're used to it at this point. We have genuinely not sniffed a good offensive line since 2015, and that was barely an average one at best. The point is this offensive line is responsible for holding what should be an incredible offense back.

Geno Smith is a very good quarterback, despite what many social media users claim, and the offensive line has failed him almost every single week. Sure, Smith can have his ugly moments, but when he has a clean pocket, his tape, and his numbers speak for themselves. I'm not asking for a clean pocket all day. Just give Smith a chance to make some plays in the pocket every now and then. Win or lose, I simply do not want to see Nick Bosa hit that [REDACTED] dance.

Cover the middle of the field

If you've watched any 49ers games this season, or any Kyle Shanahan games ever, you know just how important attacking the middle of the field is for that offense. Brock Purdy is not a world-beating quarterback. Nor is he a great quarterback, for that matter. But what Purdy is asked to do in that offense is to push the ball downfield, especially between the numbers. And he's able to do that very well.

One simple solution to this is to get after Purdy early and often. San Francisco's offense relies on Purdy having time in the pocket to allow those downfield routes to develop. If the Seattle pass rush can disrupt the timing of those plays, there's a good chance they can stop them. However, Purdy does not get sacked much and the Niners have a pretty solid offensive line. The realistic solution to stopping the seam routes is to simply match it in the secondary.

The Seahawks' safeties have been pretty up-and-down this season and haven't covered the middle of the field that well. Same with the linebacker corps. Games like these make a guy miss someone like linebacker Jordyn Brooks, who was as good at dropping back in the seam as anyone I've ever seen in a Seahawks uniform. However, Seattle has a new group and fortunately, both Ernest Jones and Tyrice Knight have looked fairly capable in ROBOT coverage. For the safeties, we'll just have to see - and maybe pray.

...and just a little bit of luck

Seattle's luck this season can simply be described as "cursed." Whether it's penalty luck, legally blind officials, fumbles bouncing in physics-defying ways, or simply staying healthy, the football gods have not been on Seattle's side this year. That needs to change on Sunday.

Whether Mike Macdonald leads the team in an ancient Pagan ritual in the locker room before kickoff or not, Seattle just needs something to bounce their way in this game. Can Purdy slightly overthrow a ball and give us a tip-drill interception? Can the officiating crew make a braindead call against San Francisco to make up for all the nonsense called against Seattle this year? Can a fumbled football bounce into the waiting arms of a Seahawks defender on Sunday? Can Brock Purdy lose a contact lens in the fourth quarter? Perhaps an invisible Norse god blocks a Jake Moody field goal?

Just give us something, football gods! We, as Seahawks fans, have been on the wrong side of your wrath for far too long. It feels like our team is always on the wrong side of some insane, chaotic, improbable goofiness, and we've had enough. Make something silly happen to San Francisco on Sunday for a change!

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