Why 49ers-Seahawks matchup will feature very few penalties

Contributor
Matt Sullivan
Why 49ers-Seahawks matchup will feature very few penalties image

The San Francisco 49ers are coming into this Divisional round matchup with the Seattle Seahawks without their top linebacker, pass rusher, and superstar tight end.

It's not going to be an easy matchup by any means, especially since the Seahawks are one of the best defensive teams in the NFL. But, fans of both teams should expect one positive in this matchup.

According to Kevin Seifert of ESPN, this game between the 49ers and Seahawks will feature two of the top-10 least penalized teams, and a head referee who threw the fifth-fewest flags this season. This should be a fairly clean game between the 49ers and Seahawks.

49ers-Seahawks projects to be mostly penalty-free

"This game will feature two of the NFL's least penalized teams," Seifert writes. "The 49ers finished the season with the second-lowest total (102), while the Seahawks (117) ranked eighth. Referee John Hussey's regular-season crew threw the fifth-fewest flags per game (13.7)."

While there will likely be a few penalties, as there's always some issue that comes up, whether it's a false start, delay of the game, holding, or many other often-seen penalties, for the most part, this game won't feature much laundry.

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Despite this being a divisional matchup in the Divisional round of the playoffs, the 49ers and Seahawks, thanks to their relatively clean play all year, shouldn't commit many penalties in this matchup.

And when combined with an official that doesn't call as many penalties as other crews do around the league, this matchup should be mostly penalty-free.

Hopefully, for the sake of everyone involved, the officials won't have to make a call one way or the other to decide the game. And with how both of these teams have played, and Hussey's crew not throwing a lot of flags, this game might go without controversy.

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