San Francisco 49ers vs. Seattle Seahawks 2019: Prediction, Odds, Preview For NFC West Title Game

The NFC West title and potentially a first-round bye is on the line in the final game of the 2019 regular season. The Seattle Seahawks will host the San Francisco 49ers on “Sunday Night Football” in Week 17 as the rivals look to set themselves up for a trip to the Super Bowl.

A victory for San Francisco would give the 49ers home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Seattle has a chance to earn the No.1 seed if they win and a few other things go their way.

The loser of Sunday’s contest will earn a wild-card berth.

The 49ers are considered to be the superior team. San Francisco is a three-point favorite on the road, according to OddsShark. The total is 47.

San Francisco is given the edge, even though first place is up for grabs and the Seahawks have already beaten the 49ers in their own building. Seattle beat San Francisco 27-24 in overtime on Nov. 11 with a last-second field goal.

There are a few reasons why the 49ers are considered to be the better team.

San Francisco is atop the NFC standings after going toe-to-toe with the best teams in the NFL. The 49ers have a 48-46 win over the New Orleans Saints on the road. They blew the doors off the Green Bay Packers 37-8 in Week 12. San Francisco nearly upset the Super Bowl favorite Baltimore Ravens on the road, falling victim to another field goal as time expired.

Six of the 49ers’ wins have come by double digits.

The Seahawks have only beaten one team by more than 10 points. Ten of their 11 victories have come by one possession. When Seattle hosted New Orleans and Baltimore, they were beaten rather comfortably.

The Arizona Cardinals upset the Seahawks 27-13 at CenturyLink Field in Week 16. Seattle announced Monday that both starting left tackle Duane Brown and starting running back Chris Carson have suffered season-ending injuries.

With injuries to their top three running backs, Seattle has signed sign Marshawn Lynch, who has sat out all year. The Seahawks’ defense has been dealing with key injuries for the last few weeks, resulting in two December losses.

Russell Wilson’s MVP-caliber play helped Seattle overcome defensive issues in the first three months of the season. Injuries and poor play have potentially exposed the Seahawks as being a tier below the top NFC contenders.

But it isn’t just Seattle that is somewhat limping towards the finish line.

San Francisco’s defense is banged up, and it’s shown in a few below-average performances. The unit that was putting up historic numbers in the first half of the season has given up 106 points over the last three games. Since Halloween, only two of the 49ers’ opponents have scored fewer than 25 points.

The Los Angeles Rams just put up 31 points against San Francisco at Levi’s Stadium. This is the same Rams’ team that couldn’t get anything going offensively against the Dallas Cowboys a week earlier.

The Atlanta Falcons beat the 49ers 29-22 in San Francisco a couple of weeks ago.

There is some good news for Seattle on the injury front. Linebacker Mychael Kendricks just returned after missing a month. Cornerback Shaquill Griffin might be back after missing two games with a hamstring injury. Head coach Pete Carroll believes there’s a good chance Jadeveon Clowney will return in Sunday’s pivotal contest.

Clowney might have been the best player on the field when Seattle defeated San Francisco. The defensive end recorded five tackles, a sack and a forced fumble as the Seahawks put Jimmy Garoppolo under constant pressure.

Garoppolo was sacked five times in that loss, completing just north of 50% of his attempts for a 66.2 passer rating. The Rams sacked the 49ers quarterback six times in Week 16.

Wilson tends to rise to the occasion in these kinds of games. Considering how vulnerable San Francisco’s defense has looked so vulnerable in recent weeks, it’s hard to bet against Seattle at home in a de facto division championship game.

Prediction: Seattle over San Francisco, 27-26