Fans are being put to sleep by sluggish Week 11 game between 49ers, Seahawks
By Peter Panacy
The 49ers' Week 11 home game against their NFC West rivals, the Seahawks, has turned into quite the snooze fest over the first two quarters.
If you're thinking of that famous "are you not entertained?" quote from Gladiator, you certainly wouldn't be applying it to the San Francisco 49ers' Week 11 home bout versus the visiting Seattle Seahawks.
Typically, these NFC West showdowns between two teams that absolutely hate each other would prompt all kinds of fireworks.
Aside from a brief on-field fiasco toward the end of the first half that saw two offsetting unnecessary roughness calls, there haven't been too many things worth wowing about.
The Niners held a 7-6 lead at the half, thanks to a 10-yard scrambling touchdown by quarterback Brock Purdy. That marked his longest rushing score ever in the NFL, which was pretty nifty, but the signal-caller has otherwise had trouble connecting with his top receivers on a regular basis. Aside from the up-and-coming Jauan Jennings, most of Purdy's targets have been relatively quiet. It also didn't help not having tight end George Kittle, who was inactive with a hamstring issue.
And Purdy tossed an ill-advised pick, too, holding his passer rating to 58.5 on the game.
San Francisco managed 12 first downs, compared to the Hawks' seven. But the 49ers have just the one-point lead to show for it, relying heavily on their defense to ensure quarterback Geno Smith and his offense have been equally frustrated.
The 49ers have started off slow this season before, offensively, including a sluggish start to their Week 10 road win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which produced an explosive third quarter.
The Niners hope to replicate that kind of output in the second half, which might not be easy with Seattle receiving the post-halftime kickoff.