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Though they share the best record in the NFC West (6-4) with the Seattle Seahawks through 11 weeks, the San Francisco 49ers are widely considered the favorites to win the division and represent it deep into the playoffs. When Seahawks WR Tyler Lockett was asked about this prediction by Andrew Siciliano of the NFL Network, he gave the Niners props before hyping up his own team.
“Oh yeah, I mean, we know the 49ers are a great team,” Lockett said. “They got a lot of great additions on their team and they’re out there playing great as a team, they’re playing phenomenal right now. But I mean for us, we’re exactly where we want to be at. We understand that each and every game is detrimental to what’s going to happen for the rest of the season.
“So it’s not just one team you have to look out for, like, we’ve got to look out for the Raiders going into this week. And so we’re just going to continue to do our part and we understand on the schedule that we have ahead of us, but we also understand that what we can be able to do as a team. We proved it the first half and so this next half is just being able to continue to play free.”
Will the Niners be able to overcome the Seahawks for the top spot in the NFC West? Or will they have to get into the playoffs the hard way, via one of three wildcard spots? Either way, it sounds like Lockett and the Seahawks aren’t afraid of the fight.
Jimmy Garoppolo Has a Tough Track Record Against Seattle
Over his NFL career, Jimmy Garoppolo has faced the Seahawks on seven occasions, according to Statmuse. Over those seven games, all of which came as a member of the 49ers, his teams have a 2-5 record, including two-straight losses in 2021. Fortunately, one of Garoppolo’s two wins came in 2022, when the 49ers beat the Seahawks 27-7.
Geno Smith, by contrast, only has one appearance against the 49ers since he became the first quarterback off the board in the 2013 NFL draft. That game came in 2022, when Garoppolo’s Niners came out on top in Week 2 in front of Seattle’s home crowd. It’s not often a 2-5 record is the high-water mark between two performers, but in this particular case, Garoppolo has the advantage over Smith in terms of head-to-head contests.
The San Francisco 49ers Are Heavy Week 15 Favorites
Though Week 15 is still a few weeks away, the 49ers enter the game with 68.5% chance of winning according to ESPN, with Seattle following not-so-close behind at 31.2% and a tie coming in at 0.3%. Of the seven games left on the schedule, ESPN projects the 49ers to win all seven but only has three of the games, against the New Orleans Saints, the Arizona Cardinals, and the Washington Commanders, as having higher winner percentage chances for San Francisco.
Will the 49ers be able to run the table and represent the NFC West in the playoffs? Or will Seattle keep things interesting both in Week 15 and through the end of the season? Either way, it’s clear neither team is backing down from the challenge.
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