Seahawks and 49ers face off for NFC's top seed in high-stakes showdown

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The playoffs start a week early for the Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers.

The top two teams in the NFC West will square off Saturday night in a rare regular-season game with such high stakes as the winner will earn the top seed in the NFC playoffs with a first-round bye and home-field advantage before the Super Bowl.

“I think in football, out of all sports, home-field advantage is the biggest advantage because I think crowd noise truly affects the game in terms of pass rush and things like that,” 49ers coach Kyle Shahanan said. "But, the main thing is just it’s one less game. I’d love to be home. That’s our goal. If that doesn’t work out, we’re excited to go on the road, too.”

This game between the Seahawks (13-3) and 49ers (12-4) marks just the fourth time since seeding began in the NFL in 1975 that two teams will play on the final week of the season with the winner guaranteed the No. 1 seed, according to Sportradar.

Seattle quarterback Sam Darnold lost in this spot last year with Minnesota against Detroit, with the only games with stakes like this coming in 1993 when Dallas beat the New York Giants on the way to a second straight Super Bowl title and in 1979 when Dallas beat Washington.

The game in 2019 came close with the Niners clinching the top seed with the win that was sealed when San Francisco linebacker Dre Greenlaw tackled Jacob Hollister at the 1 on fourth-and-goal in the closing seconds. A Seattle win that night would have given the Seahawks the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye.

“I thought it was one of the best plays ever,” Shanahan said. "Just watching everyone run on the field after it, it was just a fun, intense game. ... It’s a good reminder of how quick things can change. It all comes down to the wire and started to look bad there for a second and then Greenlaw made one of the best plays I’ve ever seen.”

The two rosters have undergone nearly a complete overhaul since that game six years ago with only seven players who appeared in that game currently on the active rosters of the two teams.

“That game right there definitely left a sour taste in my mouth,” said Seahawks defensive tackle Jarran Reed, who was a part of that game. “I remember that play like it was yesterday. You don’t forget those types of games; it’s a big moment. We’re not going to shy away from that. It’s down to it, everything is on the line right now and we know that.”

Despite the presence of Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco’s running game struggled to get going for much of this season. That’s undergone a dramatic change in recent weeks.

After ranking last in the NFL in yards per carry in the first 10 weeks at 3.51, the 49ers have gotten going down the stretch run. San Francisco is averaging 4.69 yards per carry the past three games and ranks third with 161 yards per game in that span.

“I think it’s just a collective effort of guys just sticking to the plan, continuing to get better,” McCaffrey said. “There’s not one answer. I think it’s 11 guys just committing to it. ... I think we’re seeing it and hitting it, and we just got to keep it rolling.”

The Seahawks have seen a similar recent turnaround.

Following a thrilling 38-37 overtime win against the Rams where they rushed for 171 yards, Seattle rattled off 163 yards rushing in its victory over Carolina, led by Zach Charbonnet’s season-high 110 yards.

But it won’t be easy on Saturday against the 49ers’ sixth-ranked rushing defense, which allows an average of 103 yards per game.

“We’ve stuck to our process,” Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said. “Really believed in what we’re doing.”

Brock Purdy has been playing at an MVP level and peaking at the right time for the 49ers. During the last three games for San Francisco, he has thrown for 893 yards with 11 TDs, two TD runs and a 131.5 passer rating.

It'll be critical for the Seahawks to put pressure on the 49ers’ offensive front, which could be without tackle Trent Williams after he suffered a hamstring injury against Chicago. Regardless, they’ve done a fine job of protecting Purdy, allowing one sack in each of their wins over Chicago and Indianapolis.

The 49ers now have scored 40 or more points in back-to-back games for the first time since 1995.

“We know they’re a good offense and we’re a good defense," defensive tackle Jarran Reed said. “Saturday is going to speak for itself.”

The game being moved to Saturday night wasn't beneficial to either team with Seattle coming off a cross-country trip to Carolina and San Francisco playing back-to-back games on short weeks after a Monday night game in Indianapolis in Week 16.

Neither situation is extremely common.

The Seahawks are the 20th team in the past three seasons to play back-to-back road games with the second coming on a short week. The previous teams went 6-13.

The 49ers will be the 15th team in the past three seasons to play back-to-back short weeks, with the previous 14 splitting the games.

“Once you find out, you spend 10 seconds bitter about it and then you say, ‘It is what it is,’ which is how it always is,” Shanahan said. “I mean, whatever your schedule is, whenever it is.”

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

Seattle Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet celebrates after scoring against the Carolina Panthers during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Jacob Kupferman)

San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey (23) runs against Chicago Bears safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson, bottom, during the second half of an NFL football game in Santa Clara, Calif., Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Eakin Howard)

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold passes against the Carolina Panthers during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Rusty Jones)

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, right, throws a touchdown pass to fullback Kyle Juszczyk, left, during the second half of an NFL football game against the Chicago Bears in Santa Clara, Calif., Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn)

Mohamed Salah's long goodbye to Liverpool begins on Saturday in the quarterfinals of the FA Cup, the competition which represents his best chance of a trophy in his final year at Anfield.

The Egypt winger announced last week that he will be leaving Liverpool at the end of the season after nine years at a club where he has broken scoring records and established himself as one of the world's best players.

Salah potentially has 15 games left in the famous red shirt: Seven in the Premier League as well as three in the FA Cup and five in the Champions League, should Liverpool reach the final in both of those competitions.

That won't be easy.

In the Champions League, defending champion Paris Saint-Germain is up next in the two-leg quarterfinals and it's pretty much as tough in the FA Cup, with Liverpool handed an away match at Manchester City.

Salah, who has 255 goals in 435 appearances for Liverpool, missed the Reds' last game before the international break — a 2-1 loss at Brighton in the league — with a muscle injury but has told manager Arne Slot he should be healthy enough to return this weekend.

“He just does so much for his body for such a long time that he recovers so fast," Slot said on Wednesday. "So, he will train with the team again tomorrow and if everything works well then he’s available to be with us at City.”

The 33-year-old Salah was left out of the Liverpool team for four straight games at the end of 2025 in what appeared to be a breakdown in his relationship with Slot and the club.

Since returning from the Africa Cup of Nations, Salah virtually has been an ever-present in the lineup, seemingly winning the Dutch coach round.

“That hunger never drops,” Slot said of Salah. "It's the thing I find most special about him. So many good players around the world — he's definitely one of them in the last 10 years — and to show that hunger every three days, that professionalism, that commitment to the club and to the team, wanting to score again, always wanting to play ...

“When you take him out three minutes before the end, he's like, ‘Ah, maybe I could have scored one extra.’”

City, meanwhile, is seeking a domestic cup double after beating Arsenal in the English League Cup final on March 22. Pep Guardiola's team is also chasing Arsenal in the Premier League, which takes a break this weekend to give the FA Cup its own space in the calendar.

The other FA Cup quarterfinals take place across Saturday and Sunday.

After City-Liverpool in the early kickoff on Saturday, Chelsea hosts third-tier Port Vale — the lowest-ranked team left in the competition — before Arsenal visits second-tier Southampton.

On Sunday, West Ham hosts Leeds in an all-Premier League matchup.

Manchester City midfielder Phil Foden has less than two months to persuade England coach Thomas Thomas he is worthy of a place in the World Cup squad.

Foden started both of England’s recent friendly games — a draw with Uruguay and a loss to Japan — but failed to impress either in the No. 10 role or as a “false nine," prompting Tuchel to say it's “ not a guarantee ” that Foden will be at the World Cup.

Foden was English soccer's player of the year in the 2023-24 season but has not maintained his top form and has rarely started for City in recent months.

Arsenal's team sheet for the Southampton game will be heavily scrutinized, given 10 players missed games for their national team over the international break because of various issues.

Eberechi Eze, Jurrien Timber and Martin Odegaard already had injuries that caused them to miss the League Cup final, before Piero Hincapie, Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes and Leandro Trossard all pulled out of international duty.

England's Noni Madueke and Spain's Martin Zubimendi missed the second games for their respective countries after reporting injuries.

There might be growing disharmony at Chelsea, going off recent comments by two of the team's best players.

Enzo Fernandez said after elimination in the Champions League that he couldn't guarantee being at Chelsea next season, while Marc Cucurella told The Athletic during this international break that the team was “more stable” under coach Enzo Maresca, who was fired in January, and, "If you asked me, I would not have made this decision.”

Liam Rosenior, the current Chelsea coach, is under big pressure after four straight defeats.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

England's Phil Foden holds the ball during the international friendly soccer match between England and Uruguay in London, Friday, March 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

FILE - Liverpool's manager Arne Slot talks to Mohamed Salah during the Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Tottenham in Liverpool, England, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Jon Super, File)