Jaxon Smith-Njigba's drop and 4 turnovers hurt the Seahawks in their loss to the 49ers

SEATTLE (AP) — Jaxon Smith-Njigba has made a lot of incredible catches over the past couple of seasons, but it was one the All-Pro didn’t make on Sunday in the Seattle Seahawks' 32-29 loss to the San Francisco 49ers that stuck with him.

With the Seahawks down by three points and facing third-and-10 at midfield with 1 minute left, Sam Darnold threw a deep shot to his most trusted receiver. Smith-Njigba already had five receptions for 102 yards and a touchdown and seemingly has made every big catch for Seattle since last season, when he was the AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year.

But this time, Smith-Njigba mistimed his leap and the ball hit off his hands and fell to the turf at the 25 to make it fourth down instead of giving Seattle a first down in range for a game-tying field goal.

On the next play, Cooper Kupp was tackled 1 yard short of a first down, ending the Seahawks' chances.

“I had the chance to catch the ball,” Smith-Njigba said. “So really, just catch the ball, catch the damn football at the end of the day. I know I’ll make the next one.”

The drop was just one of many unforced errors by the Super Bowl champions. Seattle had four turnovers, three of which led directly to 49ers scores, with two lost fumbles inside the 11-yard line and two interceptions by Darnold.

Darnold’s first pick first came on Seattle’s first drive of the game, as cornerback Renardo Green caught a pass intended for Smith-Njigba at the Seattle 18 and returned it to the 11. Brock Purdy hit Mike Evans four plays later for a 2-yard touchdown pass.

Darnold threw a second pick to Green again on his first pass of the third quarter.

“You’ve got to tip your cap to those guys,” Darnold said. “They played a good game, but just again, those are all things that I can control. Just can’t be putting the ball in jeopardy like that.”

Seattle’s beaten-up running back room continued to struggle with fumbles, too, as Emanuel Wilson lost the ball midway through the second quarter at the Seattle 11. Fred Warner recovered it for San Francisco and one play later, Christian McCaffrey took the ball 11 yards for a touchdown.

George Holani then lost the ball in the end zone with 13 seconds left in the first half. Niners defensive lineman Gracen Halton recovered it for a touchdown to boost San Francisco’s lead to 21-13.

Two games ago, rookie Jadarian Price was benched partway through Seattle’s Week 3 game against Washington after he lost his second fumble in two games, but the problem has continued to plague the Seahawks.

“We need to grow quickly in terms of complementary football, definitely taking care of the football,” coach Mike Macdonald said. “Way too many giveaways at this point in the season, and we’ll look at those and see how we can get it fixed moving forward.”

With four days to go until Seattle’s Thursday night matchup against Denver, the Seahawks have little time to solve their turnover problems.

“It’s always something that’s emphasized, and it’s always you drill, something you work on,” Kupp said. “Defenses have a say too, and you protect the ball as best you can. Sometimes there’s just really good plays that are made defensively, and other times, we’re like, ‘Hey, let’s just fix these, fix the issue and let’s not make the same mistake twice,’ and you move forward.”

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Seattle Seahawks running back Emanuel Wilson, bottom, fumbles the ball before San Francisco 49ers recovered the ball during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle Gracen Halton (93) strips the ball from Seattle Seahawks running back George Holani (36) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa (92) stops Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (14) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba makes a move on his way to scoring on a touchdown catch against the San Francisco 49ers during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Andrei Svechnikov and Sebastian Aho each had a goal and an assist and the Carolina Hurricanes beat Philadelphia 4-1 on Sunday night, handing the Flyers their franchise-record seventh straight loss to open the season.

The Flyers dropped to 0-5-2, breaking the record set by the 1999-00 team and matched by the 2008-09 squad. Both of those teams rebounded to make the playoffs.

Carolina earned at least a point in its 12th straight game in Philadelphia. The defending champion Hurricanes have won five in a row after dropping their first two.

Flyers rookie defenseman Oliver Bonk had a rough second period in his season debut and was a factor in three Carolina goals.

Svecnhikov scored his fourth goal of the season at 10:16 of the second period to open the scoring. Bonk turned it over to former Flyer Sean Walker at the blue line, and Walker fed Svechnikov, who skated into the slot and snapped a wrister past goalie Joseph Woll.

Aho fed a pass through Bonk, who turned around at the side of his own net, to another former Flyer, Shayne Gostisbehere, who banged home his second goal of the season to make it 2-0. Both of Gostisbehere's goals this season have come against his former team.

Aho later netted his sixth goal of the season on a pass from William Carrier. Svechnikov stripped Own Tippett in the neutral zone and fed Carrier, who blew past Bonk and slid the pass to Aho, who had an open net to shoot and score the Hurricanes' third goal.

Mark Jankowski added his fourth goal of the season with 4:51 left in the third period.

Christian Dvorak scored for Philadelphia.

Hurricanes: Host Washington on Tuesday night.

Flyers: Host Seattle on Tuesday night.

Philadelphia Flyers' David Jiricek (5) collides with Carolina Hurricanes' Nikolaj Ehlers (27) during the third period of an NHL hockey game Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Carolina Hurricanes' Jordan Martinook, left, punches Philadelphia Flyers' Tyson Foerster during the second period of an NHL hockey game Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Carolina Hurricanes' Andrei Svechnikov, center, and Logan Stankoven, right, celebrate past Philadelphia Flyers' Matvei Michkov after Svechnikov's goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Philadelphia Flyers' Rick Tocchet watches during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Carolina Hurricanes Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Carolina Hurricanes' Sebastian Aho (20) tries to get the puck past Philadelphia Flyers' Simon Benoit (44) and Joseph Woll (53) during the first period of an NHL hockey game Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)