SANTA CLARA, Calif. — There was a crucial fumble in the third quarter. There was a crippling ineligible-receiver-downfield penalty, too.
There was a mishmash of mishaps that caused the Seahawks to fall to the 49ers 41-23 Saturday — but the true turning of the tide seemed to come with the turning of a foot.
Despite coming into the first-round playoff game as a 9.5-point underdog, the Seahawks led San Francisco 17-16 early in the third quarter. Then, 49ers receiver Deebo Samuel caught a short pass that he turned into a 21-yard gain before Seahawks safety Johnathan Abram tackled him. What happened after that tackle became a source of contention — and motivation — for the Niners.
It appeared Abram twisted Samuel’s right ankle with his hands as Deebo lay on the ground. This prompted a frustrated Samuel to point to an official in hopes of drawing an unnecessary roughness flag, which never came. What did come were 25 unanswered points by San Francisco, including seven on that drive.
Is it a stretch to say Abram’s action spurred the 49ers’ run? Not according to them.
“I think that pissed a lot of people off. I think it pissed our team off, and I think you can kind of feel our team react to that,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said. “I wish we were like that from the first play always, but sometimes when some stuff motivates the guys, I think it’s cool to see us rally together. I know Deebo was bothered, and it was cool he came back and answered.”
No one here is pretending that the Seahawks (9-9) were on the Niners’ level and would have otherwise come out with the win. They were a No. 7 seed outclassed by a No. 2 seed at nearly every position. But some of us Seahawks writers were checking out flights to Philly a few minutes before Abram upset San Francisco’s primary offensive weapon. As 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa said of the incident: “Don’t poke the bear.”
So what was Abram’s take on the controversy? Basically, that he did nothing wrong.
I gotta ask you about the play with Deebo.
“It’s nothing. I mean, nothing happened. Simple. It’s that simple. Literally just made a tackle, got up and just dropped his foot.”
OK, so no intention behind that at all?
“I got his jersey. Why would it be intentional? That’s one of my closest friends. Like, I sat in the crowd when he was in the NFC Championship, in the family section — I showed up for him because he wanted me here. I was at the Super Bowl when he was in the Super Bowl. That’s one of my closest friends. Nothing to it. We’re just playing football.”
Did he say anything to you after the game?
“No — ’cause it’s nothing. The fans and the media portray it to be one way, but it’s literally nothing. Just football. Made a tackle, got up, dropped his foot.”
Seems Samuel saw it a little differently.
What were your emotions when your foot got yanked on? asked a reporter.
“I stayed down a little because I almost lost my temper,” said Samuel, who finished with 133 receiving yards and a touchdown on six receptions. “But at the end of the day, I felt like that turned our team up a notch.”
Are you saying that you just needed that time to yourself?
“Yes, a hundred percent,” Samuel said. “It hurt for sure, but in my mind I was about to lose it. I just kept calm, and just seeing how Kyle (Shanahan) came off the sideline is the true definition of our team.”
I don’t know for sure if there was ill intent on Abram’s behalf. It sure didn’t look good, but it’s not totally conclusive. All that matters is that the 49ers interpreted it as a dirty play before transforming into what’s been the most dominant team in the NFL for the past three months. Reminds me of a quote from Slim Charles in “The Wire” when he learns the reason behind the gang war he’s involved in was a total fabrication.
“If it’s a lie, we fight on that lie.”
Tough to point to one moment in an 18-point loss, but this one with Samuel seems pretty glaring. As soon as Abram “dropped his foot,” the 49ers dropped the hammer.