Fresh off their second NFC West title in four years, the 49ers are looking to run it back within their division during the 2023 NFL season and are widely viewed as the favorites to do so.
That is, unless you ask ESPN's Louis Riddick.
The NFL analyst believes the West is "wide open" for the Seattle Seahawks' taking, and his reasoning boils down to the reigning Comeback Player of the Year, quarterback Geno Smith.
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"I love [49ers coach] Kyle Shanahan as much as anybody, but ... we don't know who the quarterback's going to be for them," Riddick said on "The Rich Eisen Show." "And we don't know how it's going to work out. People still believe no matter what Geno Smith did last year, it's like, 'Well, it's Geno Smith. A broken clock can be right twice a day. He just got lucky last year, it just worked out for him.' They don't believe!"
Seattle finished in second place behind San Francisco this past season in the West, with Smith leading the Seahawks to a 9-8 record and eventual playoff loss to the 49ers during Super Wild Card Weekend. On the way to earning CPOTY honors along with his first career Pro Bowl selection, Smith was the only NFL quarterback to play every offensive snap for his team in 2022.
The 49ers certainly can't relate when it comes to the health of their signal-callers, though they overcame injury struggles in 2022 to post a 13-4 record.
San Francisco 49ers
Incumbent starter Brock Purdy currently is on the mend from his UCL surgery in March, while Trey Lance is looking to earn back playing time after suffering a broken ankle against the Seahawks in Week 2 of his 2022 campaign. Sam Darnold also will compete for the QB2 role, and there once again is uncertainty about the quarterback position in Santa Clara.
Still, Purdy is ahead of schedule in his elbow rehab after winning seven straight games as starter in 2022 to help San Francisco reach the NFC Championship Game. The 49ers, with their incredibly talented roster, have proven they can win with Purdy -- but plenty hinges on how he recovers. The Los Angeles Rams and Arizona Cardinals, meanwhile, will look to put themselves back in contention after dismal seasons in 2022.
In Riddick's eyes, the Seahawks' stability at the position gives them a leg up -- and as for the 49ers Faithful who probably won't be buying his hot take, Riddick has heard it all before, he said.
"That division is wide open," Riddick said. "It's right there for [the Seahawks] to take this year, and then go on and really get on a run. The team was a year ahead last year, and I thought last year they were a playoff-caliber, wild-card type of team when I saw them in the preseason and went out there for training camp. And people said, 'You need to find a new job, because analyzing football isn't the job for you. There's no way Seattle's going to be that good,; they'll be a top-five drafting team.'
"Seattle is for real. I'm going to jump right back on -- I never got off [the train]. I'm still on that train, and I think they win the West. I think they take it from San Francisco."
Will the Seahawks claim their first division title since 2020 during the fast-approaching 2023 season? Or will the 49ers' dominance over the West in 2022 carry over into the new campaign? With the way Smith played last season, there very well could be another wild chapter in this storied rivalry.