Can Geno Smith prove his worth, help Seahawks break losing streak to 49ers?

Geno Smith is aware that to be the man, you must beat the man.

For Smith and the Seattle Seahawks, that means figuring out a way to defeat the San Francisco 49ers, the reigning NFC conference champs and Super Bowl runners-up, in a prime-time game on Thursday night.

The Seahawks lead the NFC West at 3-2 but have lost two straight games, while the 49ers are 2-3 and have lost three of their past four. 

San Francisco, however, has won five straight games against Seattle. And the games haven’t been close, with the Seahawks losing by an average of 15 points per game. A big reason for that is because Seattle has averaged only 11.6 offensive points per game in the five losses.

Smith is 0-4 (including postseason) as a starter against San Francisco. In those four matchups, he has completed 72% of his passes for 868 yards, with three touchdowns and three interceptions. He’s been sacked 14 times and has posted an 86.9 passer rating. 

Those aren’t exactly exemplary numbers for the two-time Pro Bowler. 

“They got playmakers all around the defense,” Smith told reporters this week. “They play together. They fly around, they’ve got swagger. They’re proven, they believe in themselves. They come right in, they’re not going to try and trick you as far as the scheme goes. They’re going to line up and force you to beat them for 60 minutes.”

So far the season, Smith has completed 72% of his passes for an NFL-high 1,466 yards — including a league-high 385 yards in the fourth quarter — with five touchdowns and four interceptions. He’s also been sacked 18 times. Only Cleveland’s Deshaun Watson has been sacked more (26). 

For Smith, Thursday’s contest provides an opportunity to show he belongs in the conversation as one of the best signal-callers in the league. In the second year of a three-year, $75 million contract, Smith would like to earn a contract extension. 

Playing well against teams like San Francisco would go a long way in getting that done. Smith also turns 34 on Thursday and will be playing on his birthday for the first time in his career.  

So far this season, Smith leads the NFL with 199 pass attempts, and new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb would like more balance, taking some of the pressure off the QB to carry the offense.

Grubb lamented he did not get running back Kenneth Walker III more touches in Seattle’s disappointing loss at home to the New York Giants last week. The Seahawks are averaging just 105 rushing yards a contest, No. 22 in the NFL. 

“I’ll own that,” Grubb told reporters this week. “Got to get the ball to Ken more. And I think we had plenty of run game in the plan, didn’t have anything to do with not having enough calls for that, just didn’t get called. 

“For us, we leaned on the wrong thing. And I think if we get Ken 10 more touches, 15 more touches, things are going to look different. So that’s 100 percent on me. My job is to make sure I get all our guys in the best position possible to win the game. And I didn’t do that.”

New Seattle head coach Mike Macdonald, the Baltimore Ravens‘ former defensive coordinator, gets his first opportunity to square off against San Francisco offensive mastermind Kyle Shanahan. One reason the Seahawks hired Macdonald was because his innovative defense gave the 49ers fits in Baltimore’s lopsided victory over San Francisco last Christmas.

On Thursday, however, the Seahawks will be short-handed on defense with three starters out: Pro Bowl cornerback Tariq Woolen (ankle), edge rusher Uchenna Nwosu (thigh) and rookie defensive tackle Byron Murphy II (hamstring). Safety Julian Love (hamstring) will be a game-time decision. 

“They’ve been working on this scheme, and it’s been evolving for a long time — 30 years,” Macdonald told reporters this week when asked about facing San Francisco’s offense. “In Baltimore, we’ve gone against Kyle when he was in Cleveland and then since he’s been in San Francisco. So, we’re both familiar with each other’s schemes.

“They do a great job. … They know what they’re doing, they target stuff right. This game is a 60-minute battle of who’s going to outplay who for the length of the game. It’s always been that way for whoever they play, and we got a great challenge ahead of us.”

The 49ers have struggled so far this season, with playmakers Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle and Deebo Samuel missing time due to injuries. But Kittle and Samuel are back in the lineup, and there’s plenty of time for San Francisco to put together a winning streak that catapults them back among the top teams in the NFL. In 2021, the 49ers started the season 2-4, got hot during the second half, snuck into the playoffs and advanced to the NFC title game.

“We know how big this rivalry is,” Smith said. “These are predominantly two of the better teams in the league over the past 10 years, and it’s always going to be a slugfest. We respect those guys. They have some great players on their side, and they’re proven. As far as we go, we’ve proven ourselves as well. It’s a big-time matchup.

“They’ve been a great team, especially in recent years. It’s time for us to go out there and get it done.” 

Eric D. Williams has reported on the NFL for more than a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on Twitter at @eric_d_williams.

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