The greatest rivalry in today’s NFL takes place on Thanksgiving evening in San Francisco. Fresh off of a victory against the NFL’s best, the Arizona Cardinals, the Seattle Seahawks will travel down the west coast to take on the 49ers in Levi’s Stadium. Both teams come into the game at 7-4 and are looking to put themselves in a much better position to lock up one of the playoff spots in the NFC. The loser of the the Thanksgiving night game will face an uphill battle the rest of the way, even though the Seahawks and 49ers will face each other again in two weeks in Seattle.

Over the past two seasons, the Seahawks and 49ers have each protected home field advantage and have split the season series. The Seahawks of course were able to clinch home field advantage in last season’s playoffs and pulled out the victory against the 49ers in the NFC Championship game. You may recall Richard Sherman making the defensive play of the year and then his tirade on national TV.

That is neither here nor there as both Seattle and San Francisco are fighting to make the playoffs despite their 7-4 records. While it certainly could happen, it would take a lot for three NFC West teams to make the playoffs and Thursday’s game will provide an enormous boost to the victor’s chances.   

Here is a preview of what to expect when each club has the ball on Thanksgiving:

When the Seahawks are on offense

While efficient in last week’s win over the Arizona Cardinals, Russell Wilson continues to struggle in getting the ball to his Wide Receivers this season. That is not necessarily his fault, as the Seahawks lack a receiver with superior size or speed right now. Wilson continues to do damage with his legs and has rushed for 644 yards already this season. The Seahawks ground game continues to lead the NFL, averaging 169.6 yards per game, spearheaded by Marshawn Lynch. Lynch continues to show signs of being banged up during games, but is closing in on another 1,000+ yard season.  

Despite all of their injuries, the 49ers still possess one of the league’s strongest defenses. They are ranked #2 against the pass, giving up 207.2 yards per game, and #7 against the run, allowing 92.9 yards per game. DL Justin Smith skipped practice on Tuesday but is expected to be in the lineup for this critical game.  

One design that it would be nice to see the Seahawks revert back to this week is the use of a Fullback in their offense. A backfield that is led by Wilson, Lynch, and Robert Turbin as the FB might be able to bring an added wrinkle to the Seahawks run game and provide a little bit of extra blocking for Marshawn.  

Advantage: 49ers … but not by much

When the 49ers are on offense

Quarterback Colin Kaepernick makes at least two very bad decisions every week and it is up to the defense to take advantage of them. Kaepernick has had a rough career against the Seahawks defense, particularly the ‘Legion of Boom’. Anquan Boldin continues to be Kaepernick’s number one target, with 65 receptions on the year for 825 yards. While Michael Crabtree is also having a respectable year (48 catches, 567 yards), the inability to get TE Vernon Davis involved in the passing game (21 catches, 197 yards) sticks out like a sore thumb.  

The Seahawks defense has shown signs of returning to its 2013 form over the past couple of weeks. The Seahawks have started to create turnovers and produce sacks from the defensive line. A returning MLB Bobby Wagner provided a nice boost to the defense for last week’s match-up against the Cardinals and he will play a pivotal role in Thursday’s game.  

The 49ers have a solid one-two Running Back combo in the ageless Frank Gore and rookie Carlos Hyde. How the Seahawks front seven contains the running game, including Kaepernick’s scrambling ability, likely dictates the outcome of this match-up. Seattle’s defensive rankings are just as impressive as San Francisco’s, as the Seahawks are ranked #3 in the league against the pass (208.5 yards per game) and #6 against the run (88.4 yards per game).

Advantage: Seahawks … but not by much

Special Teams

Steven Hauschka was one of the Seahawks team MVP’s against the Cardinals last week. While the Seahawks’ Special Teams units have struggled in their coverage games, the San Francisco 49ers have actually been worse. The 49ers are ranked 30th in the NFL when looking at their Special Teams DVOA rankings, while the Seahawks have moved up to #20 in the rankings.  

A big play or two from the Seahawks Special Teams would go a long way in helping secure the victory on the road for the defending champions.  

Advantage: Seahawks

Final Score Prediction: Seahawks 24, 49ers 20

This is just as much as a “rooting for” prediction as an actual prediction. This game really could go either way. While this game has national headlines, there is really no reason that critical games like this are played on Thanksgiving night. This is a Thanksgiving tradition that needs to go away.