What we learned from the 49ers' win over the Seahawks on Thursday night

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1. Niners avoid another double-digit lead. The 49ers took a 16-3 halftime lead and immediately brought back memories of Sunday when they blew a 13-point halftime lead to the Cardinals. Also, don't forget the two-touchdown lead against the Rams. This has suddenly become the hot topic in the Bay Area and was tested again on Thursday. The 49ers actually took a 23-3 lead with an impressive performance early in the third quarter, but they gave up a 97-yard kick return TD – another game-changing special teams play this season. And after a Niners punt, Seattle cut the lead to 23-17 with a 13-play, 94-yard TD drive and got the ball back with a chance to take the lead early in the fourth quarter. Kyle Shanahan also lost a challenge, but it seemed like it was a missed review. After the 49ers completely outplayed them in the first half, everything swung toward Seattle. This would have been their third double-digit lead of the season; According to NFL Research, no other NFL team has more than one this year. But the Niners found a way to close the game thanks to massive plays from two rookies – an interception from Renardo Green and a 76-yard run over Isaac Guerendo. There were a few tough moments in the second half, but the 49ers avoided a catastrophic loss and pulled back to .500.
2. Seahawks lose physical battle and fall to .500. Just as this was a big win for the 49ers, it was also an equally big loss for the Seahawks, who went from undefeated to 3-3 in 10 brutal days. The Seahawks sent a message this week that they wanted to set a physical tone early and run the ball on Mike Macdonald's cue. The problem was that they couldn't do both. The 49ers were well prepared for the run, dominated up front and held the game Kenneth Walker III And Zach Charbonnet for a total of 52 yards on 19 carries. On the other side of the ball, the Seahawks allowed that to happen Christian McCaffrey -fewer 49ers to rush for 229 yards. It was a game of give and take for the Seahawks, no better embodied than Laviska Shenault Jr.It's night. On the one hand, Shenault's 97-yard kick return brought the Seahawks back from the dead after San Francisco took a 23-3 lead. But Shenault's early blunder – right after Deebo Samuel's 76-yard TD – took the air out of the stadium and put the Seahawks in a two-point hole. This was a valiant late performance from the Seahawks, but their early game plan quickly fell apart, making the challenge too great to overcome.
3. The Niners began to fix the red zone issues, but the injuries started piling up. The 49ers settled for field goals on their first two trips to the red zone on Thursday, continuing a disappointing trend this season. After just one of six red zone chances converted into touchdowns on Sunday, the 49ers' conversion percentage fell to 40.9% – 29th in the NFL entering Week 6. That number rose to 44.4% after the 49ers converted their next three trips to the red zone at the 20, with two big TD throws George Kittle and the icing on the cake for the rushing TD Kyle Juszczyk. It was part of an all-around impressive offensive recovery, especially considering that Jordan Mason (left shoulder) was injured midway through the second quarter and left the game for good in the third quarter. Mason made a name for himself with 81 yards on 10 touches and his backups stepped up. Isaac Guerendo filled in for Mason and was quiet early, but he exploded late for a game-winning 76-yard run. It wasn't all pretty, though Brock Purdy threw for 255 yards and three scores and used his legs effectively. Kittle and Samuel, both of whom temporarily left the field with injuries, competed on a night when Brandon Aiyuk And Jauan Jennings were pretty quiet.
4. Seahawks need more from DK, Geno. There are plenty of clues about other elements of the Seahawks, including a leaky defense. But if they want to get back on track and stay in this NFC West race, they're going to need more of them Geno Smith And DK Metcalf – more of what we saw in the 3-0 start. Smith had a strong game in the loss to Detroit, but he just hasn't looked right in the last two games. Smith's first pick was a poor fall under pressure and cost the Seahawks points. His late interception was even more disappointing. Metcalf, who lost fumbles in each of the last two games, failed to make a key third-down catch in the first quarter, and he wasn't as physical at the catch point as one might have liked for a big touchdown in the second quarter, down 16: 0. Then, just before halftime, Metcalf made what looked like a great touchdown catch, but his toe was on the line, forcing the Seahawks to settle for a field goal. Smith and Metcalf connected on a 52-yard TD bomb with 4:39 left, but it was negated by a devastating illegal shift penalty. The entire offense was plagued by Seattle's mistakes and missed connections throughout the offense, even if it ultimately ended with a score. That wasn't her fault. But Smith and Metcalf are the big-play stars of this team and they need them at their best now more than ever.
5. The undermanned 49ers defense came up big. The 49ers were already without one Charvarius Wardtheir best coverage corner, and they just placed safety Talanoa Hufanga on injured reserve. Hufanga's replacement, Malik Mustaphamade its impact noticeable early on and took off Geno Smith on the first drive and later with a nice tackle to lose Kenneth Walker. But Mustapha withdrew with an ankle injury, further reducing the already depleted group. Nevertheless, the 49ers remained extremely tough, even if the Seahawks continued to put them under pressure until the end. Renardo Green had a big stick on Walker in the first half to prevent a first down, and he made a huge play in the fourth quarter, intercepting Smith and running it back 20 yards. George Odum came just in time to get a potential TD bomb from DK Metcalf in the first half. And yes, the old standbys were there, like for example Nick Bosa with his constant pressure and Fred Warnerthe Walker blew a screen, made 11 tackles and forced a fumble. But the 49ers won't win this game without the great performances of players like Mustapha, Green, Odum and Isaac Yiadomwho also had a good evening reporting.

Insight into the next generation stats for the 49ers-Seahawks (via NFL Pro): Nick Bosa generated 14 pressures in 49 passes against the Seahawks, tying the most pressures by a pass rusher in a game over the last four seasons (when Bosa also had 14 pressures against the Rams in Week 4, 2022).

NFL Research: With his 76-yard touchdown reception, 49ers' Deebo Samuel became the first wide receiver in NFL history to join the “20-20 Club” – 20 receiving TDs and 20 rushing TDs.