5:40PM: As the 49ers prepare to take on the Seahawks for the No. 1 seed in the NFC, they will officially be doing so without Williams. San Francisco listed him as one of their inactive players for tonight’s game.
10:59AM: It appears the 49ers will go without future Hall of Fame left tackle Trent Williams in their pivotal regular-season finale against the Seahawks on Saturday. Williams, who suffered a hamstring injury in a win over the Bears last Sunday, did not practice this week. That suggests he won’t take the field with the NFC West and the No. 1 seed in the conference on the line, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network says.
If Williams sits Saturday, it’ll prevent the 37-year-old from logging his first 17-game campaign. A career-long starter since entering the NFL as a first-round pick (No. 4) with Washington in 2010, Williams has earned his 12th Pro Bowl nod this season. He’s Pro Football Focus’ third-ranked tackle out of 86 qualifiers.
It’s obviously less than ideal for the 49ers to go without Williams, but they pulled off a thrilling 42-38 win in Week 17 despite his absence. Williams played one snap before exiting, leaving Austen Pleasants to take over for the rest of the game. The fourth-year man will make the first start of his career Saturday if Williams is unavailable. It’ll be a tall order against a Seattle defense that ranks second in scoring, fifth in yards and eighth in sacks.
In better news for the 49ers, seven-time Pro Bowl tight end George Kittle said he “absolutely” plans to play in Week 18 (via Nick Wagoner of ESPN). Kittle, a limited participant in practice this week, missed the Chicago game with an ankle issue, continuing an injury-riddled year for him.
After suffering a right hamstring tear in a Week 1 victory in Seattle, Kittle spent over a month on IR. The 32-year-old has appeared in just 10 of 16 games this season, but when healthy enough to play, he has continued to post superb production. Kittle has hauled in 52 of 62 targets for 599 yards and seven touchdowns. Adding in Kittle’s blocking prowess, he’s PFF’s No. 1-ranked tight end among 75 qualifiers.
The 49ers have overcome a slew of notable injuries this year en route to a 12-4 record. While the team remains banged up, there’s only one more hurdle to clear to ensure homefield advantage through the playoffs. If the 49ers complete the season sweep of the Seahawks at home, they won’t go on the road again. That includes the Super Bowl, where the 49ers will host the AFC champion at Levi’s Stadium if they survive the NFC onslaught in January.
Sucks not to have Williams, need Kittle and Tounges to pick on those linebackers and safeties. LFG Bang,Bang!
Crosseyed will love Kittle scoring a TD tonight in a huge game … haha. They will need to run and keep the ball out of Darnolds hands. Should be a great game and I feel the Seahawks will pull it out.
Both teams have secured a playoff berth so it’s not a huge game. When the season is on the line later in the post season, Kittle will do his usual disappearing act.
Tonight’s game at Levi’s Stadium is for the NFC West title and NFC #1 seed. Winner gets a week off before a playoff game. Loser has to go to Carolina or Tampa next weekend for the wild-card round.
Having a week off could be good or it could be a momentum killer. Ultimately you have to travel away from home to claim the championship (unless your the SB host team).
And San Francisco is the super bowl home team. This game is huge. 1 seed in playoffs is always huge advantage.
Thanks to the 49ers’ hometown bottle job, the Rams will decide their old enemy’s fate. Rams beat Arizona, 49ers go to Philly or Chicago as NFC #6 seed. A Cardinal win in the Rams’ house sends 49ers to Carolina or Tampa as NFC #5 seed.
Well, Kittle didnt do much tonight but what a stupid gameplan for SF. 12 carries on offense?
Why didnt Robinson get more himself? Shanahan gets outcoached again with a chance to stay at home all postseason.
It wasn’t much of a game plan but I think Seattle defense forced them to try snd adjust. Hawks owned the time of possession and were making long third downs when needed. The Hawks defense has been getting better all year and it is showing. I would agree outclassed and outplayed. I might be bias though. Nice to have the road to the superbowl going through Seattle again.