If the 49ers are going to win their first game of 2017, it will have to come in an unlikely place.
The Niners will take on the host Seattle Seahawks at CenturyLink Field Sunday, a venue where they haven’t won since Week 16 of the 2011 season when Jim Harbaugh was head coach, Alex Smith was the starting quarterback and San Francisco was on its way to a 13-3 record and the NFC West title.
In fact, the Seahawks have won six straight over the 49ers and eight of their past nine matchups.
Plus, the 49ers will have a starting quarterback Sunday in Brian Hoyer who’s never experienced the incredible noise at CenturyLink Field. In fact, Hoyer never has faced the Seahawks – and their vaunted defense -- in his career.
“I just expect what everybody says here who’s played there,” Hoyer told reporters this week. “It’s loud. Obviously it’s what it’s known for. The bigger task is their defense. Obviously the crowd has a lot to do with it, but when you just line up and look at their defense and their scheme, it’s a tough thing to go against.”
In Hoyer’s 49ers debut last week in a loss to Carolina, he completed 24-of-35 throws for 193 yards, no touchdowns and an interception while also being sacked four times.
This week, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said Hoyer and the 49ers missed on a few opportunities to make some plays that could have turned the game around vs. the Panthers in Week 1, and he’s hoping Hoyer and the offense can be more efficient Sunday. And, he said, Hoyer can't turn over the football.
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“It’s not that you have to play perfect,” said Shanahan. “When you do get the opportunity, you’ve got to make it. You’ve got to realize that there’s going to be times, I don’t care who your team is, that you’re not going to block them. When you don’t, what happens? You can survive a sack. You prefer an incompletion, but it’s hard to survive a bunch of turnovers going against this team (Seattle).”
To beat the Seahawks, the 49ers will have to protect Hoyer better, plus run the football efficiently. In Game 1, the 49ers rushed for just 51 yards behind an offensive line that showed some major flaws. It’s possible that newcomer Laken Tomlinson will replace Zane Beadles at left guard Sunday in the search for better interior blocking. If Carlos Hyde and Matt Breida can get some holes to run through, Hoyer won’t have so many third-and-longs to convert.
NFL oddsmakers don’t believe the 49ers are yet ready to win in Seattle, making the 0-1 Seahawks anywhere from a 13- to 14-point favorite.
Sunday’s kickoff is set for 1:25 p.m.
