The Seattle Seahawks have accomplished something few NFL teams can claim: They’ve left Kyle Shanahan searching for answers.
And the San Francisco 49ers head coach has admitted as much.
Ahead of Super Bowl LX in February, Shanahan made a revealing admission about Mike Macdonald’s defense while appearing as an NBC analyst.
“I know you guys want my expert opinion,” Shanahan said. “But I haven’t scored a touchdown on these guys the last two times we played them. So I don’t know how good that is.”
The comments, revisited by Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle on October 8, have renewed significance ahead of Sunday’s NFC West showdown.
San Francisco is undefeated at 4-0, boasting one of the NFL’s most productive offenses. Yet the last time Shanahan faced Macdonald, his offense looked almost unrecognizable.
Mike Macdonald Has Had Kyle Shanahan’s Number
The Seahawks didn’t just beat the 49ers twice in January. They dismantled one of football’s most dangerous offenses.
Seattle held San Francisco to three points in a 13-3 victory in Week 18, securing the NFC’s No. 1 seed.
Two weeks later, the Seahawks eliminated their division rivals with a 41-6 playoff victory.
Consider how dramatically those games differed from San Francisco’s previous performances.
According to the Chronicle, the 49ers averaged 34.3 points over their previous eight games, winning seven. Against Seattle, they managed just 4.5 points per game.
Even Shanahan’s trademark creativity failed to produce results.
During the playoff defeat, a double-reverse pass gained one yard. A fourth-down option pitch from Kyle Juszczyk to Christian McCaffrey lost three.
Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald offered his own explanation for the success this week.
“We tackled well,” Macdonald said, according to the Seahawks’ official website. “We limited extra yardage. We rushed the quarterback with discipline and married the coverage.”
That discipline has continued into 2026.
Seattle enters Week 5 allowing an NFL-low 246.8 yards per game, according to the Chronicle.
Shanahan Revealed Why Seahawks Defense Is So Difficult to Beat
What makes Macdonald’s defense particularly frustrating is that Shanahan knows how opponents are supposed to attack it.
Executing that plan is another matter.
During his February television appearance, Shanahan explained that Seattle’s ability to defend the run without bringing its safeties closer to the line of scrimmage makes explosive passing plays difficult to manufacture.
“You better be able to run the ball,” Shanahan said.
His reasoning was straightforward: Until an offense establishes the run, Seattle can keep its safeties deep and take away big plays.
But there’s a significant problem with that strategy.
San Francisco managed only 119 rushing yards on 36 attempts during its 17-13 victory over Seattle in the 2025 season opener.
In the two subsequent losses, the 49ers combined for 161 rushing yards on 39 attempts.
Shanahan knows the formula. Macdonald has made executing it a nightmare.
And Sunday’s matchup brings a fascinating wrinkle.
The 49ers currently lead the NFL in yards per play (6.8), third-down conversion rate (57.5%) and red-zone touchdown percentage (84.6%), according to the Chronicle.
Those impressive numbers will face their stiffest test yet against a defense that has already demonstrated it can neutralize Shanahan’s offense.
Seahawks Aren’t Taking Undefeated 49ers Lightly
Despite their recent dominance in the rivalry, Seattle’s players aren’t assuming January’s results will carry over.
“None of what happened last year matters,” linebacker Ernest Jones IV said, via Seahawks.com. “It’s a new year, new season. They’ve got a hell of a group.”
There’s good reason for that attitude.
The 49ers have improved their offensive personnel, including adding veteran receiver Mike Evans, while Shanahan has had an entire offseason to study what went wrong against Seattle.
Macdonald recognizes the challenge.
“Their offense is efficient,” he said, according to the Chronicle. “It’s also explosive.”
Still, Seattle possesses something more valuable than a scouting report: proof that its defensive approach works against one of the league’s best offensive coaches.
Shanahan has had months to develop a counterpunch.
On Sunday, he’ll finally get another chance to show whether he’s found one.
49ers HC Kyle Shanahan Makes Telling Admission About Seahawks Defense