For 17 Sundays each regular season on NBC, a highlight package rolls while Carrie Underwood sings:
“The NFL’s best have come to play. Coast to coast, there’s just one thing left to say-ay-ay-ay-ay …”
The Seahawks won’t say it.
So I’ll say it.
This week, the NFL’s best will play on Saturday, a disservice to the Seahawks and 49ers. Because the league and its partners prioritize ratings over records.
At 5 p.m. on Saturday, on ESPN and ABC, the Seahawks (13-3) and 49ers (12-4) will play for everything – a division title, a No. 1 seed, a first-round bye, home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, bragging rights, revenge and NFC supremacy. What more could anyone possibly want?
Other than a full week to prepare.
That luxury was awarded to the 9-7 Pittsburgh Steelers and 8-8 Baltimore Ravens, east coast brands with billboard quarterbacks and erratic results. On Sunday Night Football, 42-year-old Aaron Rodgers (who hasn’t thrown more than two touchdowns in more than two months) and Lamar Jackson (who hasn’t thrown more than two touchdowns in more than two months) will battle for an abysmal AFC North. The product may suffer, but that’s not the point. The same faces will spike footballs while Underwood sings.
No matter that Jackson’s back injury may prevent him from playing. No matter that the Steelers dropped a 13-6 dud against the Browns just two days ago. No matter that the Seahawks pummeled Pittsburgh in September and haven’t slowed down since. No matter that quarterback Sam Darnold can complete a successful revenge tour against San Francisco, after already vanquishing the Vikings and Panthers. No matter that the 49ers had overcome injuries to Brock Purdy, Nick Bosa, Fred Warner and George Kittle to reach this point. No matter that the Seahawks have the NFL’s premier point differential (plus-181), with three losses by a combined nine points. No matter that Seattle and San Francisco have each won six straight games, on a conference collision course.
No matter that they’re more talented and entertaining, with reams of recent prime-time proof.
Like the Seahawks’ 38-37 overtime stunner against the Rams – which featured a walk-off two-point conversion, a punt return touchdown and a conference-tilting comeback. Or San Francisco’s 42-38 survival against Chicago on Sunday night, when Purdy accounted for five touchdowns.
Of course, the Seahawks and 49ers will still play in prime time. That’s not the point, either.
The point is that the NFL is prioritizing a deteriorating Rodgers and precious ratings over the two teams set to decide the NFC. It’s the principle of the thing, and there could be consequences.
Seattle (wide receiver Rashid Shaheed, left tackle Charles Cross, safety Coby Bryant) and San Francisco (left tackle Trent Williams, tight end George Kittle) have significant starters attempting to return from injuries. Those players could realistically swing the result. And in the NFL, an extra recovery day is everything.
As is the outcome. With a win, the Seahawks would secure their first NFC West title since 2020, the conference’s No. 1 overall seed, a wild card bye and home-field advantage for the divisional round and NFC Championship Game. With a loss, they’d fall to the No. 5 seed, bypass a bye and open on the road. The stakes are sizable.
Which is why this particular nit is worth picking. The Seahawks will have traveled 5,500 miles to and from North Carolina, only to hit the road again without regular rest. It’s nothing they can’t overcome, but they shouldn’t have to.
(The 49ers have less of a logistical lift, with back-to-back home games.)
“I wish it wasn’t [a short week]. We just had a short week,” San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan said Sunday. “So I really wish it would have been Sunday, but it is what it is. Hopefully the guys can heal up and be ready to go.”
It might not matter, and the Seahawks wouldn’t say so if it did. This certainly isn’t about excuses. When asked about the scheduling decision Monday, Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said on Seattle Sports 710 AM: “Whatever. When’s the game? All right, let’s go put together a plan. Let’s go.”
Besides, Seattle is 7-1 on the road this season and 14-2 under Macdonald away from Lumen Field. They’re also 2-0 on short rest in 2025, with division wins over the Rams and Cardinals, and 4-0 after road trips to the eastern time zone. San Francisco, meanwhile, has piled up 127 points (42.3 per game) in its last three wins.
So the NFL can bow before its precious ratings. It can toast Rodgers with a three-hour tribute, while the retirement reaper waits. It can continually cut to the terrible towels. It can cater to the same coast it always caters to.
Despite the circumstances, and the setting, something’s got to give.
“It’s very spicy,” San Francisco cornerback Deommodore Lenoir said of the momentous matchup. “They know what time it is.”
It’s 5 p.m. on Saturday, though it shouldn’t be.