Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
Seattle took a 17-16 lead over San Francisco into halftime on Super Wild Card Weekend, and then lost 41-23.
The Seattle Seahawks took a 17-16 lead into halftime against the San Francisco 49ers in the opening game of Wild Card Weekend. The back-and-forth first half saw the Niners take a 10-0 lead before the Seahawks got on the board with a Kenneth Walker rushing touchdown and took the lead later when Geno Smith hit DK Metcalf for a 50-yard score.
Late in the second half, San Fransisco squibbed the kickoff with just 13 seconds left in the game. A 14-yard return and a late hit on Smith with just one second left put Seattle in position to kick a field goal and take the lead as the teams went to the locker rooms.
Given Pete Carroll’s playoff history, the Seahawks were in a great position to play on in the postseason:
But they won’t. The Seahawks were outscored 25-6 in the second half and fell to the Niners with a final score of 41-23.
Carroll’s impressive run in the postseason had started back in 1997 as the head coach of the New England Patriots and continues through his Super Bowls seasons with the Seahawks
1997 Wild Card game: Patriots led the Miami Dolphins 7-0 at half, won 17-3
2011 Wild Card game: Seahawks led the New Orleans Saints 24-20 at half, won 41-36
2014 Divisional game: Seattle led New Orleans 16-0 at half, won 23-15
2015 Divisional game: Seahawks led the Carolina Panthers 14-10 at half, won 31-17
2017 Wild Card game: Seattle led the Detroit Lions 10-3 at half, won 26-6
2019 Wild Card game: Seahawks led the Philadelphia Eagles 10-3 at half, won 17-9
Despite being underdogs going into the game, Seattle played a clean first half with no penalties or turnovers to take the lead. Unfortunately for Carroll, the Niners turned it on in the second half and ruined his chance at a 7-0 record when leading at the half of a postseason game.
