Seahawks dominate 49ers in playoff blowout and advance to NFC Championship game
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The Seattle Seahawks punched their ticket to the NFC Championship game with a 41-6 thrashing of their division rivals, the San Francisco 49ers, in Saturday’s divisional round playoff game.
Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold took the field amid doubts he could play due to an oblique injury. Darnold threw for 124 yards and a touchdown amid concerns about his first career playoff win, while Seattle’s running game did most of the offense.
Running back Kenneth Walker III had 116 rushing yards with three touchdowns.
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Christian McCaffrey of the San Francisco 49ers runs the ball after a sack during the second quarter against the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Divisional Playoff game at Lumen Field on January 17, 2026 in Seattle, Washington. (Harry How/Getty Images)
San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy had 140 passing yards with no touchdowns and one interception as he was never able to get the 49ers offense into the end zone, only managing two field goal drives.
Seattle will now await the winner of Sunday’s other NFC divisional round game between the Chicago Bears and Los Angeles Rams to see who their opponent will be.
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Seattle hasn’t returned to the NFC Championship since 2014, when they looked to defend their Super Bowl title, beating Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers at home in that game, but then fell short to Tom Brady and the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl.
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Kenneth Walker III #9 of the Seattle Seahawks scores a touchdown during the fourth quarter against the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Divisional Playoff game at Lumen Field on January 17, 2026 in Seattle, Washington. (Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
Darnold will look to put an exclamation point on a dramatic resurgence after a slow start to his professional career with the New York Jets. Darnold has also found some redemption in big games after failing with the Minnesota Vikings late in the season last year.
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Jackson Thompson is a sports reporter for News Digital covering critical political and cultural issues in sports, with an investigative lens. Jackson’s reporting has been cited in federal government actions related to Title IX enforcement and in mainstream media outlets such as The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The News and ESPN.com.