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If Dennis Erickson can coax his San Francisco 49ers to a season-ending victory over Seattle, the Seahawks won't make the playoffs.
Of course, some Seattle fans would say Erickson already knows plenty about keeping the Seahawks out of the postseason. He didn't make the playoffs in four seasons as their coach, leading to his firing five years ago.
But Erickson won't
be thinking about the past when the teams meet at Candlestick Park on Saturday.
He's looking toward the future, hoping the 49ers can charge toward next season
with another victory in an outstanding December.
``It's a fun matchup for us because it's a division game, and because we're
playing pretty well right now,'' Erickson said. ``There isn't really anything
in it for me, but it's always a little bit more exciting when you play a team
that you know.''
The Seahawks (9-6) must win in San Francisco for the first time since 1979 to have a shot at their second trip to the postseason in Mike Holmgren's five seasons in charge. Seattle also must pray for a loss by Green Bay, Minnesota or Dallas.
``The fact of the matter is that we need to win our last game, and it just happens to be the 49ers,'' said defensive end Chike Okeafor, who leads the Seahawks with eight sacks after leaving San Francisco as a free agent in the offseason.
``That's really the only significance to this matchup. The weight of the game is extremely important, because that's what is keeping us alive in this playoff hunt.''
But to go anywhere, the Seahawks (9-6) must win on the road for just the second time all season. Most teams that go 8-0 at home, as Seattle did for the first time in franchise history, don't have this much trouble getting into the postseason.
``I don't believe in curses and ghosts and things like that,'' Holmgren said of the Seahawks' road woes. ``Usually there's a simpler answer than that. That answer is usually you turn the ball over more and you get more penalties and you just didn't play as precise as you do at home.
``You must learn on the road to deal with the negative energy that comes from the opponent's crowd and the noise factor for your offense. The teams that learn to deal with that usually are a little bit more mature.''
The 49ers can relate: They're 6-1 at home and 1-7 away this season.
The teams have developed a decent rivalry in the two years since the Seahawks joined the NFC West. Their meeting in Seattle last season was made famous by Terrell Owens' infamous pen-in-the-sock stunt, and the teams traded verbal snipes for the rest of the campaign.
When the teams met in Seattle earlier in the season, since-fired Niners kicker Owen Pochman missed an extra point that proved to be the margin in the Seahawks' 20-19 victory. The loss dropped San Francisco to 2-4, leaving the Niners in a hole they never escaped.
The 49ers have won two of three, but they were eliminated from postseason contention two weeks ago. San Francisco finally got its first road victory of the season last week in Philadelphia despite losing Owens for the season with a broken collarbone.
But Holmgren's defense could be in trouble against the 49ers' offense, which finally has matured into a powerhouse after struggling with inconsistency during San Francisco's rocky first half of the season.
The Niners lead the NFL with 1,415 total yards in December. Jeff Garcia has a 125.3 passer rating, also tops in the league, while Kevan Barlow has rushed for 393 yards and four touchdowns.
``It looks to me like Jeff is feeling good and healthier,'' Holmgren said. ``He's moving around and doing the things that came pretty natural for him. They're also running the ball awfully well.''
Perhaps part of the answer will be found in Okeafor, who's nursing a healthy grudge against the franchise that drafted him in 1999. He was insulted by the 49ers' lowball offer in contract negotiations; Okeafor eagerly left for Seattle, while San Francisco didn't sign anyone to replace him until picking up Chidi Ahanotu late in the preseason.
``It was a general lack
of respect in all facets,'' he said. ``I was basically used for their purposes
and not for my betterment. It was pretty one-sided.''