Could the return of arguably the greatest player of his generation at his position be the reason why the Seattle Seahawks should see the San Francisco 49ers as their biggest division threat? Myles Garrett was supposed to change everything in the NFC West. Now that Fred Warner has returned to the 49ers, it looks like he's stealing the thunder after Week 1.
After the Seahawks took care of the New England Patriots, their division rivals faced off the following evening in Australia. It was supposed to be a win for the Los Angeles Rams; Matthew Stafford was supposed to outplay Brock Purdy, and the Rams' defense was supposed to dominate.
The 49ers won; Purdy outplayed Stafford, and the 49ers' defense dominated, thanks in part to Warner's return and other key factors that helped San Francisco's defense change the narrative. It's one game, yes, but it showed plenty of reasons the 49ers might be the Seahawks' biggest division threat, and it has much to do with the defense that snuffed out the Rams.
The San Francisco 49ers' defense might be the real threat to the Seattle Seahawks
Warner's performance against the Rams was outstanding; Nick Bosa looked and played healthy, and Trent Williams shut down Garrett, albeit with the latter playing with a significant knee injury. Garrett was clearly not fully healthy. Nevertheless, at the end of the day, the 49ers outplayed the Rams' defense, and it was supposed to be the other way around.
If the version of the 49ers' defense we saw against the Rams lasts all season, the division threat to the Seahawks just got bigger, because it's safe to say the Rams' defense will not look as empty again. Even when the Rams' defense comes back to life and Garrett returns to health, what if the 49ers' defense is still better?
Going into the season, health and the switch from Robert Saleh to Raheem Morris were two of the biggest concerns for the 49ers defense, leading most to write them off as legitimate threats to the Seahawks and the Rams. Yet, Morris's defensive schemes paid off beautifully against Sean McVay's offense and Stafford's terrible quarterback play.
From the start of the game, the 49ers got nothing but stops on Stafford and the Rams' offense, and that's a problem for the Seahawks, who meet the 49ers in four weeks.
With Warner still playing like the Hall of Fame middle linebacker he showed this week, Bosa remaining healthy, Williams still dominating the front line, and a secondary that was excellent against the Rams' passing attack, this 49ers defense may blow away the low expectations placed upon them.
If the 49ers defense is anywhere close to the level they played at in Australia, the NFC West just got a whole lot tighter and more competitive. How the Seahawks deal with it will be interesting to watch. Furthermore, it may not be completely out of bounds to claim that the 49ers' defense, not the Rams', is the bigger threat to the Seahawks.
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