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You can watch Thursday night football: 49ers vs. Seahawks at 8:20 pm ET/5:20 pm PT on Amazon Prime Video.
The NFL once again gives us an important divisional showdown on Thursday Night Football when the 49ers (2-3) travel to Seattle to face the Seahawks (3-2). There are plenty of big names in fantasy football on both sides of the scoreboard, so let’s get to what we need to watch out for in this matchup.
The story of a quarterback (who deserves better)
Geno Smith currently ranks fifth among quarterbacks in fantasy points. He only has five touchdown passes, but he leads the league in passing yards and is seventh in rushing yards at the position. Smith also leads the league in completions and attempts and is tied for third in completion percentage among quarterbacks with more than 130 attempts.
But again, Smith only has five touchdown passes, one each week, good for tied for seventh-most in the league.
I don’t know about you, but something doesn’t add up.
This is a situation that screams bad luck to me. Not only has Smith had to watch multiple completions to receivers only for them to be tackled at the 1-yard line, but Kenneth Walker III has been extraordinarily efficient scoring touchdowns in the end zone and red zone this season; 67% of the Seahawks’ touchdowns through four weeks came on the ground!
Simply put, the Seahawks have made scoring on the ground look easy while also incredibly difficult in the air. Things will balance out, maybe as soon as this game.
It doesn’t seem right that a guy who pitches as frequently and efficiently as Smith still does not have a multi-pass touchdown game this season.
The Seahawks could find themselves chasing the score for two weeks in a row. To emerge victorious this time, they will have to score both through the air and on the ground. Be sure to watch Smith’s work in the red zone closely in this game.
Could this be Jordan Mason’s monster game?
Ever since Jordan Mason was promoted to the 49ers’ starting RB, we’ve been waiting for a massive performance reminiscent of the guy he replaced. So far, Mason has balanced two great fantasy games (Weeks 1 and 4) with one good game (Week 2) and two mediocre games (Weeks 3 and 5). To his credit, Mason is fifth in total running back fantasy points and second in the league in rushing yards.
But we’re still waiting for that 100-yard, three-touchdown game. Maybe we’re spoiled by what we usually get from Kyle Shanahan-designed ground attacks. Anyway, Mason has been great, but he hasn’t been the winner of the week we expected.
The main thing that has kept Mason away from that ceiling has been his receiving work. He has just seven receptions on eight targets this season, with no touchdowns, which ranks 40th among RBs this season. For comparison, Alvin Kamara has 23 receptions on 28 targets and one reception score. Mason simply hasn’t been a priority in the passing game this season, even though Deebo Samuel, George Kittle and, of course, CMC have all missed time with injuries.
But maybe we’ll see a little more of Mason in all facets of the game this week. Shanahan and the 49ers certainly saw what the Lions’ star RBs did to the Seahawks in Week 4. David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs combined for 158 total yards and three total touchdowns against Seattle. Sure, most of that damage was done on the ground (Monty produced 40 yards on one reception in that game), but the running game was one of the driving forces behind the Lions’ 42-point explosion.
Not to mention, the 49ers are coming off a loss against another division rival in which Mason received just 15 touches, while Purdy threw the ball 35 times. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Shanahan return to his bread and butter to right the ship in this game. That Mason scores several times in TNF seems like good support to follow.
Vintage Brandon Aiyuk was on display in Week 5… but don’t expect a repeat performance.
We all knew it would take some time for Brandon Aiyuk to improve. It all came together last week against the division rival Cardinals, with Aiyuk catching eight passes for a whopping 147 yards. He could have had an even bigger game if Purdy hadn’t missed him a couple of times. Regardless, it was a welcome development and performance for one of the league’s best wide receivers.
But relying on a repeat might be asking too much.
After starting the season with some solid defensive performances against outside receivers, the Seahawks’ stop unit has started to show some cracks in the armor, most recently against Darius Slayton, who dropped eight catches for 122 yards and a touchdown against them. . . Before this unexpected performance, Seattle’s secondary had not allowed a single receiver to surpass 80 yards against them (and Jameson Williams reached 80 while limited to two receptions). Unfortunately for that unit, they will be without cornerback Riq Woolen (ankle) for TNF. They could also be without safety Julian Love (hamstring), who is questionable after logging limited practices this week, noted as a game time decision by HC Mike Macdonald.
Regardless, Macdonald’s defense has been solid at limiting production from perimeter receivers this season, and that should continue in Week 6. As mentioned, I see this being a big game from Jordan Mason, but not be surprised if George Kittle and Deebo Samuel wreak havoc. Those in the middle have more important exits than Aiyuk.