Top NFC teams set to clash in California
The San Francisco 49ers dynasty of the 1980s and ’ 90s was known for its passing. The Jim Harbaugh-coached 49ers powerhouses of 2011-13 won mainly with the run as well as a stout, smash-mouth defence.
If the 2019 Niners — the NFL’S last undefeated team this season — are to start another dynasty, it looks like they’ll be copying the latter template.
If you haven’t yet seen the Niners play, now’s your chance. In a huge NFC West game on Monday night, the 8- 0 Niners play host to the 7-2 Seattle Seahawks (8:15 p.m., TSN via ESPN).
Should San Fran win, it’ll open up a 2 ½ - game lead atop the division. But if Seattle wins, the Seahawks will rise to within a halfgame of the Niners — with the Los Angeles Rams in hot late- season pursuit of both.
It’s great that the Seahawks-49ers rivalry is meaningful again, as it ranked among the NFL’S fiercest just half a decade ago. Pete Carroll’s Seahawks and Harbaugh’s 49ers were both dripping with offensive and defensive talent. The zenith of their mutual three- year dynastic clashes occurred in the 2013 NFC championship game, when the Seahawks rallied in the fourth quarter to knock off the defending conference champion 49ers.
Both San Francisco QB Colin Kaepernick and his Seattle counterpart, Russell Wilson, had epic performances. Kaepernick ran wild, but Wilson was the better passer on the day, and that was the difference, as the Seahawks went on to capture Super Bowl XLVIII.
Wilson remains Seattle’s QB and he might be on his way to an NFL MVP season. He’s that good.
Thing is, on Monday night he’ll be facing an old friend — 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman, one of the defensive mainstays on those early- to mid-decade Seahawks juggernauts, and an outspoken, intelligent team leader as well.
“Sherm looks like classic Sherm,” Wilson said Friday. “Just a ball hawk, a guy that can make a lot of
You turn on the film and they’re making plays all over the field. We’re going to have to be on our stuff.
plays. He’s smart as can be. Always going up against him is a tough challenge.”
Asked if he’ll challenge Sherman a lot, just based on sheer competitiveness, Wilson said, well, no.
“I know not to go over there too much. He’s as good as it gets over there ( on the offensive right side). Got a lot of respect for Sherman and how he plays the game. He really understands things and sees things well.
“You’ve got to be really smart when you go over there.”
The San Francisco defence isn’t getting the same kind of publicity and notice as New England’s which, at least until last Sunday night’s pounding at the hands of the Baltimore Ravens, had been receiving most of the defensive glory so far in this NFL season.
The Niners now rank first or second in the league in a whopping 12 defensive categories.
“Obviously, they’ve got a lot of great players on their defence and they’re making a lot of plays,” said Wilson. “They’ve been top- notch all year. You turn on the film and they’re making plays all over the field. We’re going to have to be on our stuff.
“We’re looking forward to the opportunity to travel on the road again. We’ve been playing great on the road, so we have no fear of that. Just go on the road and trying to win a tough game, an NFC West game.”