Seahawks clinch top NFC seed with 14 wins in franchise record season
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The Seattle Seahawks clinched the top seed in the NFC playoffs and are on a strong path to the Super Bowl with a season finale win over the San Francisco 49ers on Saturday night.
Seattle also finished with the best regular season record in franchise history, posting 14 wins for the first time.
The Seahawks held on to their 10-point lead despite outgaining the 49ers 363 yards to 173 yards and taking 64 plays to San Francisco’s 42 yards.
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Jaxon Smith-Njigba #11 of the Seattle Seahawks fails to catch the ball against Ji’Ayir Brown #27 of the San Francisco 49ers during an NFL game at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California on January 3, 2026. (Matthew Huang/Icon Sportswire)
Seattle missed a field goal in the fourth quarter and fumbled two red zone drives by turning the ball over in the first quarter, but dominated defensively to keep the missed opportunities from coming back to haunt them.
The 49ers wasted their best drive of the night as quarterback Brock Purdy faced a 10-point deficit at Seattle’s three-yard line in the fourth quarter, seemingly securing the game for the Seahawks.
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Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold completed 20 passes on 26 attempts for 198 yards in his first season with the team and helped set up the only touchdown of the entire game in the first quarter.
Darnold made up for a disappointing Week 18 game for the Minnesota Vikings last season, completing just 18 of 41 passes for 166 yards in a contest against the Detroit Lions.
“Learning from mistakes and staying calm in the pocket” made the difference in his performance Saturday compared to a year ago, Darnold said in his postgame interview with ESPN.
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Seattle Seahawks receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba #11 carries the ball against the San Francisco 49ers during the second quarter of the game at Levi’s Stadium on January 03, 2026 in Santa Clara, California. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy had just 127 yards on a late interception and a big hit on his final pass of the night, then took some time to recover. He was eventually able to walk off the field and Seattle ran out the clock.
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