Seahawks detonated the 49ers, dominating all three phases in a historic playoff demolition, sending a clear message to the league.
Seattle is officially knocking on the door of Super Bowl LX, and they didn’t knock politely ... they kicked it in.
Saturday night’s 41-6 obliteration of the 49ers wasn’t just a playoff win. It was a message, delivered loudly and early, with all three phases showing up like they had something personal to settle.
“That’s probably the most complementary game we’ve played,” head coach Mike Macdonald said afterward — and for once, coach-speak undersold the moment.
The tone was set before the offense ever touched the ball. Rashid Shaheed took the opening kickoff 95 yards to the house, detonating Lumen Field and putting San Francisco in survival mode from the jump.
It was the Seahawks’ first kickoff return TD since 2015 and one of the rarest sights in playoff history.
On the Niners’ first drive, they tried to quiet the chaos by going for it on fourth-and-1 near midfield.
DeMarcus Lawrence had other ideas, blowing up the run and essentially announcing, this is not your night.
From there, it snowballed.
Seattle’s defense forced turnovers, stopped San Francisco on downs three times, and held them to just 236 total yards and six points, a season low. Ernest Jones was everywhere — forcing a fumble early and snagging a crushing interception later — while Lawrence and Leonard Williams added sacks and constant pressure.
“They’re unbelievable,” quarterback Sam Darnold said. “It was tough facing them in camp. Glad they’re on our side.”
With short fields and a suffocating defense, the offense just needed to execute. And Kenneth Walker III delivered plenty. He pounded out 116 yards on 19 carries, scoring three rushing touchdowns and visibly draining the will from San Francisco’s front seven.
“You can see it,” Walker said. “They get slow. That’s demoralizing.”
Darnold, playing through an oblique injury, managed the game perfectly - 12-of-17 for 124 yards and a touchdown - before being pulled in the fourth quarter with the result long decided.
The 35-point margin tied the largest playoff win in franchise history and ranked among the biggest postseason blowouts of the past two decades.
Even Kyle Shanahan didn’t sugarcoat it: “They got us pretty good.”
Now, Seattle sits one win away from the Super Bowl, hosting the NFC Championship at Lumen Field next week. Macdonald made it clear the celebration will be brief.
“It was a heck of a win,” he said. “But there’s still a mission.”
Based on Saturday night, the rest of the league has officially been warned.