Two heated rivals in that of the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks are set to do battle in the Pacific Northwest on Thanksgiving night.
There is a whole heck of a lot at stake in this one. San Francisco (7-3) boasts a one-game lead over Seattle (6-4) in the NFC West. Both are in playoff positioning right now with the 49ers having bounced back following a three-game losing streak two win two consecutive.
Brock Purdy is playing at an MVP level for the 49ers. Meanwhile, reigning NFL Comeback Player of the Year Geno Smith has struggled to an extent this season and is a bit banged up heading into this game.
Despite these backdrops, the homestanding Seahawks should present a pretty difficult test for San Francisco as NFL Week 12 gets going around the league. Below, we provide four bold predictions for this game.
Brock Purdy tosses three more touchdowns for the San Francisco 49ers
After struggling during a three-game span that saw him toss five interceptions, Purdy has been up to his old tricks over the past two games. The sophomore signal caller has completed 78% of his passes for 629 yards with six touchdowns and zero interceptions during the 49ers’ current two-game winning streak.
He also became the first 49ers quarterback since Joe Montana back in 1989 to compose a perfect 158.3 QB rating in last week’s win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
- Brock Purdy stats (2023): 70.2% completion, 2,662 yards, 18 TD, 5 INT, 115.1 QB rating
What makes this prediction bold is the fact that Seattle’s defense has yielded a mere 13 passing touchdowns in 10 games this season. Led by rookie cornerback Devon Witherspoon, its secondary has excelled big time. Despite this, look for Purdy to eat.
Related: Ranking San Francisco 49ers’ Brock Purdy among NFL’s 32 starting QBs
Zach Charbonnet nets north of 100 yards for the Seattle Seahawks
With Kenneth Walker sidelined to an oblique injury, this rookie second-roud pick from UCLA will assume RB1 duties for Seattle Thursday night. Playing the backup role thus far this season, Charbonnet is averaging a solid 4.9 yards per rush. He’s a bulldozer of a back and someone who can gain that extra yard (1.6 yards after contact this season).
On the other hand, San Francisco’s defense ranks third in the NFL at a mere 81.4 yards per game. It has struggled at times with Jerome Ford (84 yards) and Joe Mixon (87 yards) doing damage against this unit. Look for Charbonnet to follow suit and and put up the best rushing day against San Francisco this season.
Nick Bosa breaks through with two more sacks
It’s not too surprising that Bosa has put up big numbers in the two games since San Francisco acquired Chase Young in a blockbuster trade on Halloween. The reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year has recorded five quarterback hits and three sacks on the season.
With opposing offensive lines now struggling to double team Bosa, he’s going to continue eating. Meanwhile, Smith is being sacked an average of two times per game this season. His protection has been much better than a season ago. Despite this, we’re expecting Bosa to continue eating come Thanksgiving night.
San Francisco 49ers win by two touchdowns
As a touchdown favorite in this game, no one is really expecting the 49ers to blow out Seattle on the road Thursday evening. With that said, these 49ers have had the upper-hand against Seattle. Including the playoffs, San Francisco won all three games against the Seahawks by an average of 15 points per game last season.
As for Purdy, he was dominant in the 49ers’ wild card win over Seattle last January — completing 18-of-30 passes for 332 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions. Very little has changed between the two teams since then, leading to us boldly predicting this game won’t be as close as most imagine.
- Final prediction: San Francisco 49ers 31, Seattle Seahawks 14