The San Francisco 49ers got bounced by the Seattle Seahawks in the playoffs in an ugly contest. It is easy to overreact and say that the Niners are way behind Seattle, but the gap may not be as large as some think.
It's a fact the Niners were limited to just nine points scored and no touchdowns in two games against the Seahawks in the final three weeks of the season, but there were a lot of factors at play.
Obviously, injuries impacted San Francisco throughout the entire season but especially in those two contests. The Niners were without left tackle Trent Williams in that Week 18 contest to determine the No. 1 seed in the NFC, and they were without All-Pro tight end George Kittle in the playoff matchup.
That is not to say the 49ers would have won either of those games if both of those guys are healthy, but it stands to reason that the second matchup would have been a much closer contest.
One can acknowledge the injury issues without claiming that's the only reason the Niners lost. San Francisco has to get bigger at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball and needs more speed on offense.
Drafting or signing a speedy wide receiver or running back could be all the Niners need to get more dynamic on offense. Missing Brandon Aiyuk the entire season, and Ricky Pearsall being injured most of the year limited what the Niners could do down the field.
But if they can address that deficiency, then Seattle's defense should not be able to have its way with San Francisco.
On defense, the Niners do have to get better at stopping the run. Losing both Nick Bosa and Mykel Williams on the edge certainly did not help matters, but getting those two guys back along with having Alfred Collins, who had a solid rookie campaign, in the middle of the defensive line should make the run defense much better.
The 49ers may need to figure things out at safety as well. The Malik Mustapha-Ji'Ayir Brown tandem worked at times, but Mustapha did not have as good a year as many hoped for coming off an injury. They need that hard-hitting Talanoa Hufanga-type back there to make plays and force more turnovers.
There are certainly other ways San Francisco can improve next season, but this notion that there is some cavernous gap between the 49ers and the Seahawks is overblown. Seattle is in a better spot right now, but if San Francisco improves in key spots in the offseason, then the two teams could be battling for the NFC West again next season.