The San Francisco 49ers were a 12-win team last season despite missing key defensive players like Nick Bosa and Fred Warner, and Brock Purdy missing significant time on offense. The 49ers were devastated by injuries all season, yet they went 12-5, made the playoffs, and somehow their defense was still excellent.
Leading up to this season, the Seattle Seahawks watched the 49ers get ravaged by injuries again during the preseason, most notably on offense. Before the season began, things didn't look good for San Francisco. Well, they're 2-0, with a defense that looks dominant and an offense that looks unstoppable.
This is what the Seahawks will have to contend with at least twice this year, and it's why their Week 5 matchup could play out entirely differently from last year's first game between the division rivals. Of course, the Seahawks were never going to overlook the 49ers to begin with. That said, they may have to look at them differently based on what we've seen through two weeks.
Brock Purdy could make this year's Seattle Seahawks vs. San Francisco 49ers first test different than last year
When the Seahawks met the 49ers in opening week last season, Purdy led the 49ers to a close 17-13 win in Seattle. He threw for 277 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. It wasn't Purdy's cleanest game, and as the season went on, injury troubles and inconsistent play on the field kept him from finding a consistent rhythm.
What we've seen from Purdy through two games into this season is a stark contrast to last year, and with a defense that looks stellar in its own right, these 49ers look like one of the best teams in the league. Purdy, however, is the X-factor, because as he plays, so do the 49ers. Luckily for them, he's played some of his best football over the past two seasons.
What does this mean for the Seahawks? For one, if Purdy keeps it up, Seattle should expect a much more efficient version of Purdy when they host San Francisco in Week 5, not far from now. While both defenses have looked rock solid so far, if these two explosive offenses get any room to run, we could see a score much larger than last year's 17-13.
The way Purdy is throwing the football right now strongly suggests the Seahawks will soon face a different version of the 49ers quarterback, and that could be a problem. Of course, Purdy is currently dealing with a very thin wide receiver room, and that doesn't help him at all.
During the 49ers' win over the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, Demarcus Robinson went down with an ankle sprain, and rookie De’Zhaun Stribling was lost in Week 1 for at least two months. Purdy's weapons have thinned since the preseason; whether that will slow him down remains to be seen.
In any case, the Seahawks will see a very different 49ers offense than last season, which makes their first matchup of the year all the more compelling. Purdy is the reason for it, and he'll likely be the reason should these two division rivals meet again for a third time later on; the Seahawks have a real threat on their hands.
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