San Francisco 49ers: Lessons from the Playoff Loss to the Seattle Seahawks

The last time the San Francisco 49ers took on the Seattle Seahawks, they ended up agonizingly short of the Super Bowl.  The Legion of Boom and the rest of Seattle’s star defense took the best the 49ers could offer and made the big plays down the stretch to hold onto a 23-17 victory.

It was more frustrating because the 49ers had jumped out to a 10-0 lead before surrendering it back to Seattle—it’s not like they were beaten cover to cover or were even trailing the entire way. 

It was more frustrating because, for the second straight year, the 49ers’ season ended on passes aimed for Michael Crabtree in the corner of the end zone.  It was more frustrating because it marked what might well be the peak of a divisional rivals’ success.

Thursday’s game doesn’t have quite the same stakes as the last time the two teams met.  The 49ers likely only have to split the season series with Seattle to get into the playoffs, and while this will be an easier matchup than the one in Seattle in two weeks, the 49ers will get a second chance if they slip up here.

In addition, this isn’t the same Seahawks team that was stomping through the league last year.  They’ve had their ups and downs.  While that defense is still No. 1 in terms of yards allowed, it's allowing more points—seventh in the NFL this season, as opposed to first last year. 

They’ve been less ball-hawking in the secondary, with only five interceptions all season.  Don’t get me wrong, this is still a very good defense, but it's down to mortal levels rather than the group of all-time greats it was last year.

And, of course, this game will be held in Levi’s Stadium rather than CenturyLink.  The 49ers have won their last five home contests against Seattle, stretching back to the Mike Singletary era.  The Seahawks have some rather massive home/road splits; they’re 2-3 on the road, compared to 5-1 at home this season.  These birds prefer nesting at home.

Still, watching the footage from the last time these two teams met, there are a couple of important keys that jump out at you—things the 49ers will have to change in order to ensure victory in this game.

Protection, Protection, Protection

Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press

In the NFC title game, the 49ers' offensive line allowed just one sack, but it allowed 12 hurries, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required).  Colin Kaepernick was under duress once every 2.7 plays, and the Seahawks got there without blitzing—not a single blitz was charted.

Instead, they used exotic fronts and the sheer power of players such as Michael Bennett, Cliff Avril and Clinton McDonald to chase Kaepernick about the field—mostly attacking the right side of San Francisco’s offense.

With Anthony Davis still suffering from concussion symptoms, we may see another game from Jonathan Martin at right tackle.  According to PFF, Martin allowed a sack and a couple of hurries last week and has generally been subpar at the tackle position—fine for a backup but not an ideal starter against a ferocious pass rush.

Fortunately, that Seattle pass rush hasn’t been quite as ferocious this season. They only have 16 sacks on the season, placing them in 29th place overall.  It’s still an above-average pass rush, but again, it's not to the same extent it was last season. 

Avril and Bennett have begun to pick up the slack some, registering a combined 34 quarterback pressures over the last four weeks, according to PFF, but that’s not the sort of numbers the team was putting up in 2013.

Keep Kaepernick upright, and the odds of winning increase dramatically.

Bounce to the Outside

Elaine Thompson/Associated Press

At first glance, you’d think the 49ers found some running room against Seattle in their last matchup.  They did go for 161 yards on the ground, but that stat is misleading.

Kaepernick gouged the defense for 130 yards himself, with almost two-thirds of that coming on scrambles out of the pocket.  On designed runs, the stats were less flattering.  The 49ers only gained 78 yards on 23 carries—that’s not bad, per se, but it’s not nearly as gaudy as the stats otherwise indicated.

Up the middle was a no-go.  According to Pro Football Focus, the 49ers only gained 14 yards on 13 carries up the middle in the conference championship.  The likes of Red Bryant and Chris Clemons essentially shut down any push the 49ers could get inside.

Bryant and Clemons are gone now, plying their trade in Jacksonville.  That doesn’t mean the Seahawks are devoid of run-stoppers, though; Michael Bennett and Bruce Irvin, especially, have been stepping up their game over the past month, and Tony McDaniel has a real juicy matchup against a rookie center like Marcus Martin. 

You also always have to worry about Kam Chancellor running up to slam people in the box, though he’s just fully healthy again after a groin injury.

Seattle can be gashed—we saw the Kansas City Chiefs put up 190 yards on the ground against them just two weeks ago.  They did it, surprisingly, by doing just what the 49ers couldn’t do—heading right up the middle.  Jamaal Charles gained 102 of his 159 yards on carries right up the middle, according to Pro-Football-Reference.com.  That’s inflated by two long carries, but his median run was still four yards, which isn’t too shabby.

DeMarco Murray and the Dallas Cowboys also shredded the Seahawks run defense, but they did it to the outside—Murray had 70 of his 115 yards off right tackle.  Of course, his right tackle is Doug Free, one of the best in football.  Charles’ center is Rodney Hudson, who is having a very solid year of his own.

The 49ers should thus play toward their strengths and run behind their best run-blockers, Mike Iupati and Joe Staley.  Stick Bruce Miller in there to be a lead blocker and, if healthy, Vance McDonald as an extra blocker on the line, and you have quite the formidable running game. 

The 49ers' best bet is to probe the right side of Seattle’s defense, which means going after Avril.  Avril’s much more of a pass-rusher than a run-blocker, so I have the sneaking suspicion they can get some traction in that direction.

Pressure, Pressure, Pressure

Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press

The 49ers got some serious pressure on Russell Wilson during the conference championship game, sacking him four times and pressuring him a total of 21 times, according to PFF.  They also did a good job of containing Wilson during those pressures—he only squirted out for one quarterback scramble for three yards, meaning the pressure did a fantastic job of keeping him in the pocket.

Wilson only completed 40 percent of his passes when pressured in the championship game, which is pretty solid.  The thing you have to worry about with Wilson is him slipping out to the outside around the pass rush and darting through the open field.

Three times this season, Wilson has gone over 100 yards on the ground—against Washington, St. Louis and New York.  This has been about 50-50 on designed runs and quarterback scrambles; no quarterback in the league takes off more than Wilson, and few are smarter about maximizing yardage with their legs.

The trick for Aldon Smith, Ahmad Brooks and Aaron Lynch will be to not over-pursue—to get pressure with their rushes but not allow Wilson to bounce out to the outside again.  They have to keep him in the pocket.  Wilson is a solid quarterback in the pocket but just your run-of-the-mill starter.  It’s when he can make things happen with his feet that he becomes amazing.

If the 49ers can bring pressure without allowing themselves to be gouged by Wilson on the ground, they stand a great chance of winning this game.

Bryan Knowles is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report, covering the San Francisco 49ers.  Follow him @BryKno on Twitter.