Geno Smith puts 49ers to sleep with clutch runs, vaults Seahawks back into division race

Geno Smith clearly refused to leave without a win. Trailing 17-13, the Seattle quarterback took the ball with 2:38 remaining and literally carried the Seahawks to a 20-17 victory at San Francisco.

“We showed a lot of fight, showed a lot of heart, especially at the end,” Smith told Pam Oliver in a FOX postgame interview. “But I love when the ball’s in my hand at the end of the game.”

He got a lot of love Sunday. Commanding an 80-yard drive in the waning moments, including four completions to Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Smith put San Francisco to sleep with two clutch runs in the final minute. First, with 50 seconds left, he ran for 16 yards to the 49ers’ 21-yard line. Then, he found an open lane and snuck in the corner of the end zone on a 13-yard, game-winning burst with 12 seconds left.

“Team win,” said Smith, who finished with 29 yards on four carries for Seattle (5-5). “Took everybody, and everybody played great. I thought our defense was phenomenal.”

That defense held the 49ers (5-5) to just 277 total yards, San Francisco’s lowest effort since Oct. 15, 2023. But the turning point in the game happened with the 49ers’ defense on the field. With just under seven minutes in the third quarter and the 49ers protecting a 10-6 lead, San Francisco edge-rusher Nick Bosa aggravated a hip injury and didn’t return. Bosa had 1½ sacks and an additional tackle for loss before the injury. After he left, Seattle scored two crucial touchdowns.

Smith orchestrated those two drives thanks in part to Olu Oluwatimi, who made his second NFL start after the sudden retirement this week of starting center Connor Williams. San Francisco also played without a key offensive contributor. Tight end George Kittle, who had two touchdowns in the teams’ first game at Seattle Oct. 10, was inactive with a hamstring injury.

Seattle beat 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy for the first time. Since San Francisco drafted him last overall in the 2022 draft, Purdy entered with a 5-0 mark against the Seahawks, including a 2022 playoff victory.

Three NFC West teams – the Seahawks, 49ers and Rams – are now tied with 5-5 records, one game behind Arizona (6-4), which had a bye. Seattle will host Arizona in a battle for first place next Sunday while the 49ers head to Green Bay (7-3).

For more information on the Seahawks and 49ers, visit the Seattle and San Francisco team pages at ProFootballPost.com.