49ers reclaim lead, edge Seahawks 32-29 at Lumen Field

The San Francisco 49ers took back the lead on Brock Purdy’s fourth-quarter touchdown drive and got Eddy Pineiro’s 44-yard field goal with 1:56 left to beat the Seattle Seahawks 32-29 on Sunday, October 11, at Lumen Field.

Purdy completed 19 of 29 passes for 189 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, repeatedly finding Mike Evans, who caught seven passes for 113 yards and a score. His 7-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter, followed by a successful two-point pass to Evans, erased Seattle’s 26-21 lead and changed the game’s final shape.

Seattle’s surge, San Francisco’s answer

Seattle had climbed from an eight-point halftime deficit to its five-point third-quarter lead. Sam Darnold hit Jaxon Smith-Njigba for a 16-yard touchdown, and a 48-yard field goal put the Seahawks ahead 26-21 after San Francisco’s turnover gave them another short field.

The 49ers answered with the game’s most important sustained possession: 13 plays, 74 yards and 6:52, ending in Purdy’s touchdown pass and the conversion for a 29-26 advantage. Seattle tied it on a 40-yard field goal, but San Francisco’s next possession moved into range for Pineiro’s go-ahead kick.

Seattle still had one last chance, and Darnold connected with Smith-Njigba for 35 yards to midfield. The Seahawks reached 35 yards on four plays from their own 15 before turning it over on downs, leaving the 49ers to finish a three-point escape.

Turnovers set the terms

The decisive break before halftime came at the goal line. Seattle led 10-7 before Christian McCaffrey’s 11-yard touchdown put San Francisco ahead; after another Seattle field goal, a fumble at the Seattle goal line became a 49ers touchdown with 13 seconds left in the half. That play swung San Francisco’s win probability from 57% to 79%.

Neither offense was consistently clean: San Francisco committed three turnovers and Seattle four. But the 49ers found more value on the ground, posting 0.23 rushing EPA per play while Seattle was at -0.16; EPA measures expected points added on each play. San Francisco also held a 48% success rate, the share of plays with positive EPA, to Seattle’s 39%.

McCaffrey supplied 68 yards on 11 carries and the quick score after Seattle’s second-quarter fumble, while Jaden Dugger had nine tackles and a sack. For Seattle, Smith-Njigba produced five catches for 102 yards and a touchdown, and Emanuel Wilson ran 20 times for 61 yards and a score. The 5-0 49ers host the Washington Commanders on Monday, October 19; the 3-2 Seahawks visit the Denver Broncos on Thursday, October 15.