49ers hold off Seahawks for much-needed win in Seattle, 36-24

Ominous vibes of a third second-half collapse in six games loomed in the air at times for the San Francisco 49ers against the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday night, but they were able to finish the job this time around, fighting off the Seahawks for a 36-24 win at Lumen Field in Seattle.

The 49ers jumped out to a 23-3 third quarter lead over the Seahawks before letting them climb back into the game by allowing two consecutive touchdowns. But a fourth quarter interception by rookie cornerback Renardo Green followed by a touchdown from tight end George Kittle put the 49ers back up by two scores, then the 49ers held the Seahawks off from there with the help of a late drive that was capped by a touchdown run from fullback Kyle Juszczyk.

The win put the 49ers at 3-3 for the season and gave them their first NFC West victory after blowing double-digit leads to the Los Angeles Rams in Week 3 and the Arizona Cardinals in Week 5. It also tied the 49ers with the Seahawks for first place in the NFC West.

Quarterback Brock Purdy threw for 255 yards and three touchdowns with zero interceptions on 18-of-28 passing, while rookie running back Isaac Guerendo led a 229-yard ground effort for the 49ers with 99 yards. Geno Smith completed 30-of-52 passes for 312 yards, one touchdowns and two interceptions for the Seahawks.

First Half

The Seahawks started the game on offense and moved downfield quickly, due in large part to a 30-yard third down completion to wide receiver D.K. Metcalf. But the 49ers stepped up on defense short of the goal line, courtesy of rookie safety Malik Mustapha, who was in the lineup due to an injury to starter Talanoa Hufanga. On a 3rd-and-5 at the 49ers' 25-yard line, Mustapha stepped in front of a Smith pass and snagged the first interception of his NFL career, giving the 49ers possession at their own 3-yard line.

The 49ers dug out of their field position hole with a 13-play 90-yard drive that featured some fancy footwork from Purdy and 38-yard run from running back Jordan Mason. But the drive fizzled inside the Seahawks 10-yard line, leaving the 49ers to settle for a 25-yard field goal from kicker Matthew Wright to take a 3-0 first quarter lead.

The teams exchanged punts after the field goal, then the Seahawks punted back to the 49ers with just under 14 minutes left in the second quarter. Lightning struck for the 49ers after that, as Purdy found a wide open Deebo Samuel on the first play of the next possession, then Samuel escaped the Seahawks defense and dashed 76 yards to the end zone for the first touchdown of the game and a 10-0 lead.

One big mistake led to another for the Seahawks, who turned the ball over to the 49ers on the ensuing kickoff when cornerback Darrell Luter punched the ball out of the hands of kick returner Laviska Shenault at the 30-yard line. Linebacker Tatum Bethune recovered the ball for the 49ers at the Seahawks' 29-yard line, but the 49ers were held in check after the turnover and settled for a 41-yard field goal from Wright for a 13-0 lead.

The Seahawks started the next drive at their own 29-yard line and put together their best drive of the game to that point, a 10-play, 69-yard drive that ended with a 20-yard field goal from kicker Jason Myers. Smith completed three passes for 46 yards to wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba on the drive and faced a 1st-and-Goal at the 2-yard line following a pass interference penalty in the end zone on cornerback Isaac Yiadom. The Seahawks almost turned that penalty into a touchdown on a third down pass to Metcalf, whose foot narrowly landed out of bounds after making a catch on the play, but they decided instead to come out of the half with points and took the field goal as time expired in the first half.

The 49ers ended the half with an overall yardage edge of 244 to 133 with an advantage of 105 yards to 24 yards on the ground. Purdy completed 139 yards and one touchdown on 9-of-14 passing in the first half, while Smith finished with 109 yards and one interception on 9-of-18 passing.

Second Half

Things picked up for the 49ers where they left off on offense as they engineered a nine-play, 70-yard drive to start the third quarter and took a 23-3 lead on a 10-yard touchdown pass from Purdy to tight end George Kittle. The 49ers used a combination of runs from Mason and backup running backs Isaac Guerendo and Patrick Taylor as well as a 29-yard completion to Kittle to move to the 10-yard line, then on a 3rd-and-3 Purdy threaded the needle to Kittle, who toe-tapped his way to a touchdown to finish the drive.

The Seahawks then got the spark they needed to get back in the game, courtesy of a splash play on special teams from Shenault. Making up for the fumble he lost in the first half, Shenault took the ensuing kickoff after Kittle's touchdown and plowed through the 49ers' coverage unit for a 97-yard score to cut the lead to 23-10.

The 49ers were held to a punt on the next possession, then the Seahawks sliced through the 49ers for a 13-play, 94-yard drive to bring themselves within 23-17 on a touchdown run from running back Kenneth Walker. The Seahawks avoided a punt early in the drive when Smith connected with wide receiver Tyler Lockett on a 37-yard gain on a 3rd-and-8 from the 21-yard line, then steadily moved downfield before Walker ran in from one yard out with 1:24 left in the third quarter.

The teams exchanged punts after the touchdown, then the 49ers drove to the Seahawks' 40-yard line before being forced to punt with 9:35 left in the game. The punt was downed at the 3-yard line, then four plays later the 49ers got the interception from Green, who was needed Thursday night with starter Charvarius Ward sidelined with an injury. Green picked Smith off at the Seahawks 35-yard line and returned the ball 20 yards to the 15, putting the 49ers within striking distance of the end zone.

The 49ers got the job done from there, as after two runs from Taylor, Purdy connected with Kittle again for a touchdown from nine yards out to take a 29-17 lead. The 49ers then attempted a run with Taylor on a two-point conversion but failed, leaving themselves up 12-points with 6:20 remaining.

The Seahawks responded with a 15-play, 70-yard drive that ended with a 9-yard touchdown pass from Smith to Tyler Lockett on a 4th down play to cut the lead to 29-24 with 1:44 left in the game. The Seahawks still had a chance with three timeouts remaining, but Guerendo, who was in the game while Mason was dealing with a shoulder injury, put the Seahawks' backs against the wall with a 76-yard run to the 5-yard line on the first play of the next drive. Two plays later, Juszczyk closed the door on the Seahawks with a touchdown run to put the 49ers up 36-24.

The final drive from the Seahawks ended with a failed Hail Mary attempt in the end zone, then the 49ers kneeled on the ball to run the clock out with 11 seconds remaining to end the game.

Game Notes: The 49ers entered the game as 3.5-point favorites over the Seahawks... The Seahawks' all-time advantage slipped to 30-24 against the 49ers after their loss... Mustapha left the game with an ankle injury in the second quarter and did not return... One week after starting kicker Jake Moody injured his ankle on a tackle, Wright hurt his shoulder attempting a tackle on a kickoff late in the game... Next up for the 49ers will be a home showdown against the unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs (5-0) on Sunday, October 20 (4:25 p.m. ET/1:25 p.m. PT, FOX). The teams last met in Super Bowl LVIII, which ended in heartbreak for the 49ers as they fell 25-22 in overtime.

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