The Seattle Seahawks continue to tumble down the stretch, losing their fourth game in five tries Thursday night, falling 21-13 to the San Francisco 49ers.
After a 6-3 start to the season that saw them take the NFC West lead, Pete Carroll's club has lost the edge. Thursday, they had a chance to cauterize the bleeding at home against the Niners. Instead, they watched their rival celebrate a division title on their home turf.
"This was a classic opportunity in the division with the team that's leading, and here, Thursday, all that stuff," Carroll said after the loss, via the team's official website. "Everything was really there for us to have a great night. They're a really good team and they're doing really good stuff and been really consistent. They got a bunch of wins in a row and all that. So it was going to be a fantastic win for us, and we just hung in there with an opportunity to get it done."
The loss keeps the 7-7 Seahawks at the No. 8 spot in the NFC postseason race entering the weekend. However, with Detroit nipping at their heels, Green Bay still in play, and the Commanders and Giants still ahead of them in the playoff race, Carroll's crew has their work cut out in the final three weeks to right the ship.
"We got a lot of work to do, a lot of stuff to get done here," Carroll said. "With where we picture the season ending up, is a place that we're going to be really proud of if we can pull it off. It ain't going to be easy. It's going to be hard. That doesn't mean we can't do it. We should've done it tonight; we didn't get it done. Should have done it last week; had a chance. These opportunities slip away and the season doesn't end like you hope. We got an attitude about doing something here. We are not done."
Thursday night's loss turned on a series of events late in the first half. Seahawks safety Quandre Diggs dropped an interception that would have set up Seattle in scoring range in a 7-3 contest. Instead, the 49ers punted. Then, Dre Greenlaw smashed running back Travis Homer, who fumbled the ball, setting up a scoop-and-score for San Francisco, putting the Niners ahead 14-3 at halftime.
"We had an enormous swing at the end of the half," Carroll said. "It was 7-3, about at the two-minute warning, we have a chance at a pick at midfield at least, and then the fumble gets them right down on the 5-yard line. So, they were able to take advantage of those opportunities and did a nice job. I give them credit. I've been crediting them all week, because I really think a lot of Kyle (Shanahan) and the job that he does and that team, so that's why it would've been a really great opportunity to get them, but it didn't happen."
It was the latest missed opportunity for Seattle as they try to get back on track. The schedule gets no easier, however, with a trip to Arrowhead in Week 16 to face the Kansas City Chiefs, who have won 11 of their past 12 home games.