SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Brandon Aiyuk didn’t see the play live. But after Deebo Samuel went down on the grass, Aiyuk looked up at the replay board to see what happened. Immediately, the 49ers receiver was incensed.
He watched Samuel catch a pass on a crossing route on third-and-7 and break a couple of tackles to get a first down before Seahawks safety Johnathan Abram ankle-tackled him. Aiyuk saw Abram rise from the grass with Samuel’s left foot in his hand. Abram, the former Raiders safety, pulled and twisted Samuel’s foot, hard enough to lift Samuel’s backside off the turf. It was the same leg in which Samuel sprained his MCL and ankle back in Week 14, causing him to miss three games — which made the situation extra sensitive for the 49ers.
Advertisement
Samuel, after protesting to the officials, stayed down, causing a stop in play. He needed a moment to keep his temper in check.
“It hurt, for sure,” Samuel said. “But in my mind, I was about to lose it.”
His teammates lost it for him. Trent Williams, the 6-foot-5, 320-pound left tackle, was first in the face of the Seahawks defense, his red No. 71 surrounded by white jerseys. Aiyuk was right behind him.
“I was just looking for (Abram),” Aiyuk said. “I couldn’t find him because he was on the sidelines. But I was looking for him. Just because that’s out of pocket, man. That’s out of pocket. … We see there’s no love. None at all. If you want to take it there, I guess we can do that.”
At the time, with just over 10 minutes left in the third quarter, the Seahawks were ahead 17-16. The 49ers were driving and at the Seahawks’ 16 after Samuel’s completion, so the lead was tenuous. But if the Seahawks had a chance to beat the 49ers, perhaps catching the heavy favorites overlooking an inferior team, it went out the window on that play.
The better team was suddenly triggered. Abram had awakened the monster.
Is anyone harder to tackle than Deebo Samuel? @19problemz#SuperWildCard #FTTB
📺: #SEAvsSF on FOX
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/96NMtTe9OX pic.twitter.com/ONItGgvhRJ— NFL (@NFL) January 14, 2023
“I don’t know why you’d want to piss off Deebo Samuel,” tight end George Kittle said after San Francisco wrapped up a victory Saturday, “because then that’s going to piss off Trent Williams, who’s one of the scariest guys on the field. I don’t know why you’d want to make any of us angry. Like, really? Why would you give us a reason to not like you more than we already do?”
Five plays later, Brock Purdy scored on a quarterback sneak. It was the start of a 25-0 run and resulted in a 41-23 win in this wild-card matchup between NFC rivals. The 49ers probably would’ve won the game anyway. What changed was the fashion.
Advertisement
Samuel is nicknamed after the character in the cult-classic movie “Friday.” But unlike the neighborhood bully played by the late Tiny Lister, the 49ers’ Deebo isn’t a lone wolf. He’s got more bullies with him. On offense. On defense. On special teams. Even in the crowd, too. Abram had all of them turned up. It was like the everybody in red turned up E-40’s “Bang, Bang, Niner Gang” in their head.
“We don’t play that,” right guard Aaron Banks said. “So, it is what it is. They felt us in the end. We’ve got a lot of dawgs on this team. It’s a family in here. We’re all brothers. You mess with one, you mess with all of us. It’s not like we weren’t playing hard, but it kind of pissed us off after that. ‘Oh, y’all want to play dirty? Cool. We gon’ really get on y’all head.'”
The stunning part for the home team, judging by the reaction in the locker room, is why a Seahawks player would do that. Not just do such a thing to a player’s leg, which they almost universally deemed as egregious. But why would they help snap the 49ers out of their rut when things were going so well for Seattle?
At halftime, Levi’s Stadium felt like a kettle in which an upset was brewing. The visiting Seahawks, who lost 27-7 last time they were at Levi’s back in Week 2, became the aggressors in the second quarter.
The 49ers took a 10-0 lead and were a stop and a score from opening up the game. But Seattle marched 78 yards in 14 plays, 49 of those yards coming on five runs by Kenneth Walker III. After holding San Francisco to a field goal, Seattle scored again to take the lead. This time, with the 49ers stacking the box, rushing six trying to get to the quarterback, Geno Smith launched a 50-yard bomb to DK Metcalf, punishing the 49ers’ man coverage. The Seahawks’ plan was working to perfection — run the ball, force the defense to commit and punish them for committing.
Advertisement
In back-to-back drives, Seattle totaled 19 plays, 149 yards and scored two touchdowns. The 49ers were on their heels, needing to regroup at halftime, down a point. Their offense was moving the ball to start the second half, but being in the red zone wasn’t a guaranteed touchdown. No telling what happens if Abram doesn’t try to twist Samuel’s leg like a PS5 steering wheel.
But he did. And the 49ers answered with anger. The team that prides itself on physicality started taking the fight to the Seahawks.
“In this game,” Kittle said, “you don’t need an excuse to turn that switch on. You don’t need that. You don’t need an excuse to dial it up. But that gives you a reason to play with a little more anger and a little bit more meanness to you. Less joking and talking in between plays with the defense. It’s more of a, ‘Hey, bring it.’ Because I’m going to bring my best and you’re not going to be able to handle it.”
After the 49ers punched in a touchdown to take a 23-17 lead, the Seahawks were putting together one of their methodical drives. They were moving the ball, but it felt more uphill. The defense was finally starting to cause problems. Eventually, it made a play — Charles Omenihu forcing a Smith fumble and Nick Bosa recovering.
Levi’s Stadium erupted. Based on what happened, and how they were feeling, there was absolutely no way the 49ers offense wasn’t going to score. They gained 31 yards on the next three plays. After Christian McCaffrey was tackled for a 1-yard loss, Purdy found Jauan Jennings for 33 yards. The scrambling Purdy then found Elijah Mitchell wide-open for another score. The 49ers went up two touchdowns.
But poetic justice was still coming.
After Seattle went three-and-out, the 49ers offense got the ball again. On second down, Purdy ran a naked bootleg and found a wide-open Samuel slicing toward the left sideline. Deebo took off. Down the left sidelines.
THERE GOES DEEBO 💨 @19problemz
📺 #SEAvsSF on FOX
📱 NFL+ // https://t.co/KTh0i4oaLh pic.twitter.com/yumOPhJ5mi— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) January 15, 2023
Out ahead of him was Aiyuk. He saw Samuel coming and occupied the one defender between him and the touchdown. It was Tariq Woolen. Aiyuk blocked him for a long time, refusing to let him go. Eventually, Samuel sped past and into the end zone for a 74-yard touchdown.
You know they would’ve loved if it was Abram back there. But a game-breaking touchdown is a statement loud enough that Aiyuk didn’t have to go find Abram. All of Seattle got the message.
“I would not piss off the dudes on offense,” Bosa said. “Especially Deebo because he’ll make you pay.”
GO DEEPER
Kawakami: Brock Purdy's playoff debut is a sign of huge things to come for the 49ers
(Photo: Ezra Shaw / Getty Images)
