SEATTLE — It is the biggest game for the Seahawks since the end of the 2019 season, the last time fans packed Lumen Field for a home playoff game.
Seattle earned a first-round bye and now hosts San Francisco on Saturday night with a trip to the NFC Championship Game on the line. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m., marking a defining moment for a 2025 Seahawks team that has rebuilt its identity around physicality and depth.
That identity has been most evident in the running game. Seattle finished the regular season with more than 2,000 rushing yards, averaging 123.3 yards per game and scoring 22 rushing touchdowns. The Seahawks have leaned heavily on their backfield rotation, using multiple runners to control tempo and wear down defenses. Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet combined for 17 touchdowns and nearly 1,800 rushing yards, providing balance and flexibility in Seattle’s offensive approach.
Seattle’s commitment to the ground game has also been reflected in its play-calling tendencies. The Seahawks ranked among the top three teams in the NFL in both rushing attempts per game, averaging about 22.5 carries, and rushing play percentage, with one of the league’s highest shares of offensive snaps coming on the ground. The approach has allowed Seattle to control tempo, limit turnovers and dictate the pace of games as it enters the postseason.
While the ground game has set the tone, Seattle has also leaned on the emergence of Jaxon Smith-Njigba as a difference-maker in the passing attack.
Smith-Njigba has set multiple franchise records over the past two seasons, including breaking the Seahawks’ single-season receiving yards record with 1,793 yards in 2024 and tying the team’s single-season receptions mark with 100 catches. He surpassed that total in 2025 with 119 receptions, becoming the first Seahawk with multiple 100-catch seasons, and recorded multiple 100-yard receiving performances in the same game, setting new franchise benchmarks for receiving production entering the postseason.
The teams split their two regular-season meetings. San Francisco won 17-13 at Lumen Field on Sept. 7 to open the season, while Seattle responded with a 13-3 victory over the 49ers on Jan. 3 in Santa Clara.
The matchup adds another chapter to one of the NFC’s most familiar rivalries. Seattle holds a 32-24 edge in the all-time series, including a 31-23 advantage in regular-season meetings. The teams are tied 1-1 in postseason games, with each side having won once in the playoffs.
An unexpected layer of intrigue emerged Thursday when quarterback Sam Darnold was listed as questionable on the Seahawks’ injury report. Under NFL rules, players who are limited in practice must be listed, and Darnold said the designation does not reflect serious concern about his availability.
“I feel really confident I’ll be able to go on Saturday,” Darnold said at his weekly press conference.
Darnold said he felt tightness in his oblique during practice and opted for treatment rather than pushing through the issue with the game just 48 hours away. He reiterated his expectation to play Saturday, though the Seahawks will continue to monitor his status.
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If the issue affects Darnold’s mobility or performance, Seattle could face difficult in-game decisions, offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak confirmed on Thursday.
Coach Mike Macdonald provided a final update following Friday’s practice, but the Seahawks appear to be moving forward with Darnold expected to start in one of the most consequential games in the franchise’s recent history.
TRAFFIC AND LOGISTICS
With the stakes high on the field, fans heading to the stadium should also prepare for challenges off it. An estimated 70,000 fans are expected inside Lumen Field for Saturday’s playoff game, with thousands more expected to gather at watch parties and sports bars across SODO.
Driving to and from the game could be difficult as the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) continues work on Revive I-5, its largest highway preservation project. I-5 northbound is reduced to two lanes near the Ship Canal Bridge to accommodate a work zone, while the express lanes are operating northbound 24 hours a day, a combination that has created heavy congestion southbound during much of the day.
Because of those conditions, WSDOT says transit and public transportation will be the best option for many fans.
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“For Saturday’s game, the big thing is going to be plan ahead,” said Tom Pearce, a WSDOT spokesperson. “You need to allow some extra time for travel because there’s always just a normal amount of heavy travel going to a game like this.”
Sound Transit estimates about 10,000 fans will use light rail and Sounder trains on game day, with extra service scheduled to handle demand. Two additional S Line Sounder trains and one extra N Line Sounder train will operate as part of the agency’s “Game Train” service.
WSDOT said fans should expect the heaviest congestion after the 5 p.m. kickoff, particularly once the game ends.
“We do expect to see traffic simply because I-5 northbound is reduced to two lanes up at the Ship Canal Bridge,” Pearce said.
For fans taking Sounder trains home, S Line trains will depart King Street Station 10 minutes and 45 minutes after the game, while N Line trains will depart 45 minutes after the final whistle.
Drivers who plan to travel by car are being encouraged to consider alternate routes. Pearce suggested leaving Lumen Field and heading south toward Spokane Street before entering I-5 to access the express lanes, though he cautioned that many drivers may attempt the same route.
“That may be a little dicey because a lot of people may consider that option,” Pearce said.
Some fans have questioned why WSDOT did not fully reopen the Ship Canal Bridge for Seattle’s first home playoff game in years, similar to plans for the FIFA World Cup later this year. Pearce said that was not feasible.
“It takes us an entire weekend to set up the work zone; we need to restripe lanes,” Pearce said. “It’s not the kind of thing that we can just pick up, and then we’ll put it back later.”
Even after reaching the stadium area, parking could present another obstacle. Parking spots closest to Lumen Field are expected to cost around $100, and the Lumen Field Parking Garage, which has roughly 3,100 spaces, will be open only to season pass holders on Saturday.
