The 1972 Dolphins can pop the champagne. The final undefeated team of the 2019 season has finally lost.
Despite their best effort, the 49ers battled but fell short to the visiting Seahawks and Russell Wilson, who strengthened his MVP case by helping lead the Seahawks to a 27-24 win in overtime. Wilson's 21-yard run in overtime set up Jason Myers' 42-yard, game-winning kick as time expired.
Seattle improved to 8-2 while closing the gap between themselves and the NFC West-leading 49ers, who fell to 8-1.
While Wilson made several key plays, Seattle's defense, specifically Jadeveon Clowney, came up big, as Seattle scored 21 points off of three turnovers while overcoming an early 10-0 deficit.
The Seahawks handed the Niners their first loss in an OT thriller and there's a lot to go over. Fortunately, Will Brinson, John Breech, Ryan Wilson and Sean Wagner-McGough are here to break down the game, the five most exciting players in the NFL and more. Listen below and subscribe here for daily NFL goodness fired into your eardrums.
The 49ers struck first, marching 50 yards on 13 plays before rookie Chase McLaughlin drilled a 43-yard field goal. A defensive holding call on the drive not only gave the 49ers a pivotal first down, it also wiped out an interception by Seahawks cornerback Shaquill Griffin.
San Francisco hit pay dirt on their second possession, with Jimmy Garoppolo hitting receiver Kendrick Bourne for a 10-yard score. A 30-yard completion to Deebo Samuel, a 22-yard run by Tevin Coleman and a 12-yard completion to Emmanuel Sanders, who left the game early with an injury, were key plays on the seven-play, 83-yard drive.
The only score of the second quarter came on Jarran Reed's forced fumble of Garappolo that was scooped up by Clowney, who returned it for a 10-yard score to get Seattle on the board. Seattle threatened to score just before halftime before 49ers defensive back Jaquiski Tartt forced the ball out of Seattle receiver D.K. Metcalf's hands a yard shy of the 49ers' end zone.
The 49ers sustained two big injuries during the first half, as Sanders (ribs) and offensive lineman D.J. Jones (groin) would not return for the second half.
The first score of the second half was set up by Seattle defensive back Quandre Diggs, who picked off a Garoppolo pass near midfield and ran it back to the 49ers' 33-yard line. The pick set up Russell Wilson's three-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jacob Hollister. Wilson's touchdown pass, his 23rd of the season, gave Seattle the lead after the Seahawks trailed 10-0 early in the game. While he was sacked four times, Wilson went 17 of 22 in regulation while finishing as Seattle's second leading rusher.
Clowney, who enjoyed his best game as a Seahawk, forced a fumble of Garoppolo on the 49ers' ensuing possession that was scooped up by Poona Ford. The turnover set up Chris Carson's fourth touchdown of the season while stretching the Seahawks' lead to 21-10.
The 49ers' defense came to the rescue at the start of the fourth, with DeForest Buckner recovering Germain Ifedi's fumble and returning it for a 12-yard score after Wilson initially lost the ball after being hit by defensive end Arik Armstead. Bourne's 2-point catch brought the 49ers to within three.
San Francisco tied the score with 6:17 left on Chase McLaughlin's 35-yard field goal. A 24-yard catch by Deebo Samuel, who recorded his first career 100-yard receiving game, helped set up the score. Wilson quickly drove Seattle down the field, completing a critical 13-yard completion to newly acquired receiver Josh Gordon on 3rd-and-6. The play helped set up Jason Myers' go-ahead, 46-yard kick with 1:48 left.
San Francisco raced right down the field, with McLaughlin drilling a 47-yard kick with one second left in regulation to force overtime.
Russell quickly drove the Seahawks in field-goal range, hitting Gordon for 15 yards on third down before evading the rush to hit Malik Turner for 28 yards on a 3rd-and-16 play. But Wilson then committed his only big mistake of the night: his interception to rookie linebacker Dre Greenlaw that was returned to Seattle's 49-yard line.
Two big plays by running back Raheem Mostert set up McLaughlin's 47-yard attempt that hooked left. Wilson was unable to take advantage of the miss, as his third down pass for Metcalf was broken up by Emmanuel Moseley. Griffin's breakup of a deep pass for Samuel gave Seattle one last shot at the win.
Wilson wouldn't waste this opportunity, scrambling for 21 yards to set up Myers' game-winning kick as overtime expired.
Let's take a deeper dive into how the Seahawks handed the 49ers their first loss of the season:
Why the Seahawks won
There's a reason people consider Russell Wilson an MVP candidate. While No. 3 was once again mostly commanding a run-first offense, and while he threw what could've been a game-changing pick late in the fourth, he also showed Jimmy Garoppolo what franchise-caliber QB play looks like -- and then some. Behind an iffy line, facing one of the most fearsome pass rushes in the league, Wilson was his trademark self, eluding defender after defender to extend plays, manufacture two go-ahead scores and just look absurdly comfortable from start to finish, including at the end of OT with both the Niners and, occasionally, the refs against him. Defensively, Seattle was just as impressive, catching on to Kyle Shanahan's play calls, limiting the ground game and thus forcing Garoppolo to lead a one-dimensional comeback attempt. Jadeveon Clowney, Jarran Reed and the rest of the 'Hawks D-line showed out on a night that was supposed to belong to the Niners' front four, racking up lots of QB hits, forcing two Garoppolo fumbles and prompting more takeaways in the secondary.
Why the 49ers lost
Honestly, you have to start with Garoppolo. It's not crazy right now to suggest that one of the biggest threats to a deep Niners playoff run is the Niners' own QB. Yes, his receiving corps was without an injured Emmanuel Sanders for much of the game and could've helped him out here and there. Yes, Jimmy G looked fine and dandy against Arizona in Week 9. But that was Arizona, and he still had plenty of chances Monday night. Heck, the Seahawks even came in allowing lots of yards through the air, and yet when Garoppolo was called upon to step up and make plays in a game his team led for almost three full quarters, he failed. Not only that, but he consistently gave Seattle the ball, coughing up his sixth and seventh fumbles of the year and misfiring on several wide-open targets. Yes, his team fought back to go into OT, but that was despite his efforts, not because of them. One thing's for sure: You can't pin much of the loss on the Niners' defense, which continued to eat with five sacks, three forced fumbles, a fourth-quarter scoop-and-score and a late turnover to set up OT.
Turning point
Up 10-7 more than halfway through the third quarter thanks to their stifling "D" and two straight scoring drives to open the game, San Francisco was driving toward midfield after forcing another Seahawks punt. But then came perhaps Garoppolo's most costly misfire of the night, a deep right shot to Kendrick Bourne that should have been caught but was also high considering Bourne was all but uncovered in the open field. The ball bounced right off Bourne's hands and into those of new Seattle safety Quandre Diggs, making his Seahawks debut. A 44-yard return instantly put the 'Hawks in business, set up a three-play TD drive and paved the way for a 21-10 Seattle lead. While the Niners would claw back to tie the game at 21 in the fourth and then send it to OT, their affording so many points to the Seahawks early on ultimately proved crucial. Alternative turning points: Rookie kicker Chase McLaughlin's missed 47-yard OT field goal and Garoppolo's underthrown deep ball to Deebo Samuel later in the extra period. Both plays kept Seattle in the game and, eventually, sealed the Niners' defeat.
Play of the game
Up until late in the third, the Seahawks hadn't done anything offensively. Only Clowney's fumble-recovery score had gotten them on the board at that point. But Wilson broke out MVP-caliber poise in the face of San Francisco's swarming D-line to cap off a short go-ahead TD drive with a beautiful little floater to tight end Jacob Hollister, who somehow managed to corral the pass while falling to the ground and put the Seahawks in front:
Quotable
"Let's settle down on 'masterpiece.' That was a disjointed multi-part meltdown with a bunch of insanity and some questionable decision-making. Fun as hell, but I don't know about a masterpiece."
You might not completely agree with CBS Sports' Senior NFL Writer Will Brinson, who shared these thoughts after the game, because, to be fair, Monday's game was entertaining as they come. But he's got a point in regards to the two teams' performances. Seattle certainly should take pride in its win, but these were rivals practically begging the other side to claim victory for the last 15 to 25 minutes of game time. There's lots of room for improvement on both sides moving forward -- and a wide-open NFC West to play host to their battle down the stretch.
What's next
The Seahawks (8-2) will get a week to rest and bask in their upset, then return from the bye on Nov. 24 for another prime-time affair -- a Sunday night matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles (5-4). The 49ers (8-1), meanwhile, will be back at home on Nov. 10 for a Sunday afternoon showdown with another NFC West rival, the Cardinals (3-6-1) -- a team fresh off a close loss and the same one that took San Fran down to the wire on Halloween.
Relive all the action from Monday's wild NFC West rivalry here: