NFC Championship: San Francisco 49ers travel to face Seattle Seahawks at CenturyLink Field, one win from a Super Bowl berth. Kickoff time: 6:42pm. Winner advances to the Super Bowl. Loser carries one of the year's hardest what-ifs into the offseason.
San Francisco 49ers at Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship, with a Super Bowl berth on the line. The conference title round is the one that turns nameplates into legacy. For Seattle Seahawks, the home crowd at CenturyLink Field is asked to be a player; for San Francisco 49ers, the road environment is supposed to be the test that breaks lesser teams. Coaches will lean on what worked all year. Players will lean on what their bodies have left in them.
San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks have outlasted everyone else in their conference. One walks out of CenturyLink Field with the conference title; the other walks out with a brutal what-if. Around the league, coaches are watching tape on both staffs for next year's prep. Every Super Bowl-bound team starts the offseason as the team to beat.
San Francisco 49ers versus Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship. The teams who reach this round have already proven they survive a long schedule; the stats that matter most now are the ones that compress: scoring differential, red-zone efficiency, turnover margin. At this stage of the year, the simple math is that defenses tighten and the team that protects the ball wins more often than the team that scores the most. Whichever side of San Francisco 49ers-Seattle Seahawks cleans up the careless plays first usually walks out with the result. Conservative-game expectations should not surprise the reader; both staffs know exactly what worked all season and will lean hard on what travels. The early answer is the kicking game, where any swing of field position compounds.
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| New England Patriots | 12-4 | W2 |
| Miami Dolphins | 8-8 | L2 |
| New York Jets | 8-8 | W2 |
| Buffalo Bills | 6-10 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati Bengals | 11-5 | W2 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 8-8 | L2 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 8-8 | W3 |
| Cleveland Browns | 4-12 | L7 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Indianapolis Colts | 11-5 | W3 |
| Tennessee Titans | 7-9 | W2 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 4-12 | L3 |
| Houston Texans | 2-14 | L14 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Denver Broncos | 13-3 | W2 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 11-5 | L2 |
| San Diego Chargers | 9-7 | W4 |
| Oakland Raiders | 4-12 | L6 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle Seahawks | 13-3 | W1 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 12-4 | W6 |
| Arizona Cardinals | 10-6 | -- |
| St. Louis Rams | 7-9 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia Eagles | 10-6 | W2 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 8-8 | L1 |
| New York Giants | 7-9 | W2 |
| Washington Redskins | 3-13 | L8 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Green Bay Packers | 8-7-1 | W1 |
| Chicago Bears | 8-8 | L2 |
| Detroit Lions | 7-9 | L4 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 5-10-1 | W1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Carolina Panthers | 12-4 | W3 |
| New Orleans Saints | 11-5 | W1 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 4-12 | L2 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 4-12 | L3 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco 49ers | 3 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 310171717 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 0 | 3 | 10 | 10 | 03132323 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 49ers | Phil Dawson 25 yard field goal | 3-0 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 49ers | Anthony Dixon 1 yard rush ( Phil Dawson kick) | 10-0 |
| Seahawks | Stephen Hauschka 32 yard field goal | 10-3 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | Marshawn Lynch 40 yard rush ( Stephen Hauschka kick) | 10-10 |
| 49ers | Anquan Boldin 26 yard pass from Colin Kaepernick ( Phil Dawson kick) | 17-10 |
| Seahawks | Stephen Hauschka 40 yard field goal | 17-13 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Seahawks | Jermaine Kearse 35 yard pass from Russell Wilson ( Stephen Hauschka kick) | 17-20 |
| Seahawks | Stephen Hauschka 47 yard field goal | 17-23 |
| 49ers | Seahawks | |
|---|---|---|
| Team totals | ||
| First Downs | 16 | 14 |
| Total Yards | 308 | 308 |
| Turnovers | 3 | 1 |
| Passing | ||
| Comp/Att | 14/24 | 16/25 |
| Pass yards | 153 | 215 |
| Pass TD | 1 | 1 |
| Interceptions | 2 | 0 |
| Sacks taken | 2 | 4 |
| Sack yards lost | 6 | 22 |
| Net pass yards | 147 | 193 |
| Rushing | ||
| Rushes | 28 | 29 |
| Rush yards | 161 | 115 |
| Rush TD | 1 | 1 |
| Discipline | ||
| Fumbles | 3 | 3 |
| Fumbles lost | 1 | 1 |
| Penalties | 7 | 8 |
| Penalty yards | 65 | 66 |
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | |||||
| Colin Kaepernick | 14/24 | 153 | 1 | 2 | |
| SEA | |||||
| Russell Wilson | 16/25 | 215 | 1 | 0 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | ||||
| Colin Kaepernick | 11 | 130 | 0 | 58 |
| Kendall Hunter | 3 | 16 | 0 | 11 |
| Frank Gore | 11 | 14 | 0 | 9 |
| Anthony Dixon | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| LaMichael James | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SEA | ||||
| Marshawn Lynch | 22 | 109 | 1 | 40 |
| Robert Turbin | 2 | 6 | 0 | 4 |
| Russell Wilson | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO | ||||
| Anquan Boldin | 5 | 53 | 1 | 26 |
| Michael Crabtree | 4 | 52 | 0 | 22 |
| Frank Gore | 1 | 17 | 0 | 17 |
| Vernon Davis | 2 | 16 | 0 | 11 |
| Vance McDonald | 1 | 13 | 0 | 13 |
| Quinton Patton | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| SEA | ||||
| Doug Baldwin | 6 | 106 | 0 | 51 |
| Jermaine Kearse | 2 | 44 | 1 | 35 |
| Golden Tate | 4 | 31 | 0 | 13 |
| Zach Miller | 3 | 25 | 0 | 15 |
| Robert Turbin | 1 | 9 | 0 | 9 |
Seattle Seahawks defeated San Francisco 49ers 23-17 at CenturyLink Field in the NFC Championship. The final scoring play was Seahawks: Stephen Hauschka 47 yard field goal. Top line of the day: Russell Wilson: 215 pass yards on 16-of-25, 1 TD, 0 INT. Seattle Seahawks advance to the Super Bowl.
Seattle Seahawks walked out of CenturyLink Field as the team that survived an NFC Championship San Francisco 49ers will replay in its head for the entire offseason. The scoreboard says 23-17. A one-score game throughout. The decisive points came on the fewest possible margin, which is how these matchups usually resolve. The final scoring play came from Seahawks: Stephen Hauschka 47 yard field goal. Whether it was the game-decider or just the period at the end of the sentence depends on what the camera caught earlier. Seattle Seahawks are bound for the Super Bowl.
Seattle Seahawks 23, San Francisco 49ers 17. Round: NFC Championship. Attendance: 68454. Q1: 1 scoring play. Q2: 2 scoring plays. Q3: 3 scoring plays. Q4: 2 scoring plays. Top performers: - Russell Wilson: 215 pass yards on 16-of-25, 1 TD, 0 INT - Colin Kaepernick: 130 rush yards on 11 carries - Doug Baldwin: 6 catches for 106 yards
NFC Championship, played at CenturyLink Field. Final: San Francisco 49ers 17, Seattle Seahawks 23, with Seattle Seahawks taking the result by 6. **First quarter**
- 49ers: Phil Dawson 25 yard field goal
**Second quarter**
- 49ers: Anthony Dixon 1 yard rush ( Phil Dawson kick) - Seahawks: Stephen Hauschka 32 yard field goal
**Third quarter**
- Seahawks: Marshawn Lynch 40 yard rush ( Stephen Hauschka kick) - 49ers: Anquan Boldin 26 yard pass from Colin Kaepernick ( Phil Dawson kick) - Seahawks: Stephen Hauschka 40 yard field goal
**Fourth quarter**
- Seahawks: Jermaine Kearse 35 yard pass from Russell Wilson ( Stephen Hauschka kick) - Seahawks: Stephen Hauschka 47 yard field goal
**Top performers**
- Russell Wilson: 215 pass yards on 16-of-25, 1 TD, 0 INT - Colin Kaepernick: 130 rush yards on 11 carries - Doug Baldwin: 6 catches for 106 yards