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San Francisco 49ers: Ranking the Five Biggest All-Time Rivalries

By Peter Panacy

December 8, 2013; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick (7) shakes hands with Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson (3) after the game at Candlestick Park. The 49ers defeated the Seahawks 19-17. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
December 8, 2013; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick (7) shakes hands with Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson (3) after the game at Candlestick Park. The 49ers defeated the Seahawks 19-17. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jan 19, 2014; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman (25) tips the ball against San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree (15) for an interception by Seahawks outside linebacker Malcolm Smith (not pictured) during the fourth quarter of the 2013 NFC Championship football game at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 19, 2014; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman (25) tips the ball against San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree (15) for an interception by Seahawks outside linebacker Malcolm Smith (not pictured) during the fourth quarter of the 2013 NFC Championship football game at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /

No. 2: Seattle Seahawks

All-Time Series Record: 15-21 (not including playoffs)

This NFC West rivalry is certainly newer than the rest but nonetheless heated.

The 49ers and Seattle Seahawks rivalry doesn’t lack any of the intensity as others seen on this list. Heck, it might even be more heated.

In the early 2010s, both the 49ers and Seahawks had up-and-coming quarterbacks — Colin Kaepernick and Russell Wilson, respectively — expected to transform the NFL insofar as the way the game was played under center.

And it made for some great drama, both in the regular season and in the playoffs.

The 2014 NFC Championship game had everything in the making for a classic postseason bout. It was a back-and-forth contest between two tough defenses and a slew of playmakers on either side.

Only a tipped would-be game-winning touchdown pass by Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman ended up giving Seattle the victory. Oh, and Sherman’s postgame antics surely added fuel to the rivalry’s fire.

Seattle went onto win the Super Bowl, and Wilson is among the best QBs in the league. Kaepernick is no longer with San Francisco.

And the Niners are struggling to rediscover how to make this rivalry heated once more.