49ers vs. Seahawks: Ranking top 10 moments in NFC West rivalry

No. 1: Seahawks obliterate 49ers in Week 16 of 2012

If you recall, in their first encounter that year, the 49ers held Seattle to two field goals. That did not sit well, and the Seahawks came back with a vengeance during the final week of 2012. It’s not so much they beat the 49ers 42-13 as much as what this did for the rivalry.

Again, from this point on, the Seahawks set their targets on the Niners and showed no mercy. Since then, the 49ers only won twice while the Seahawks won 10 in a row.

During this massacre, there was one point that sealed the 49ers’ fate and ignited Seattle’s fire to obliterate San Francisco. If there was a moment for the Seahawks that’s the equivalent of “The Catch,” a moment against a bitter rival that sparked a legacy, it’s this one.

Scoreless early into the second quarter, and after a long, taxing drive that was riddled with questionable penalties on both sides, the 49ers lined up for chip-shot field goal on 4th-and-3 on the Seattle 3-yard line.

Kicker David Akers went for the kick, it was blocked by defensive tackle Red Bryant, the ball was recovered by none other than, you guessed it, Richard Sherman. And he proceeded to take it 90 yards for a touchdown:

The reason I picked this as the top moment and likened it in magnitude to “The Catch” is it was that big. The Seahawks made up their mind they were out to crush the 49ers, and this game was not the same afterward.

You know what happened the following year in the NFC Championship game, and you know how the next six years went after that. It can be traced back to this moment in time. That’s a bold statement, and I stand by it.

Fear not, however. The next six years could be vastly different. Brighter days are ahead and everything seems to be pointing toward a changing of the guard in favor of the 49ers.

And it could start as early as Monday Night Football.