Seahawks keys at 49ers: A different Riq Woolen, new AJ Barner, chill Sam Darnold

6 days ago 2

A ton’s happened since the Seahawks and 49ers last met.

Including to and for Riq Woolen.

San Francisco targeted Seattle’s fourth-year cornerback for two huge plays late on what proved to be its game-winning drive way back in week one at Lumen Field. That was after Woolen broke up a pass earlier in the game Sept. 7.

“I think with the exception of a couple plays, I thought Riq played well that game,” Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said this week.

Those couple of plays: With the Seahawks leading 13-10 late in that game, Woolen was in stride with Ricky Pearsall in one-on-one coverage of his deep route down the left sideline. Then Woolen stopped as Brock Purdy threw his pass. Pearsall kept running. He zoomed past the stopped Woolen for a 45-yard catch, to the Seahawks 22. That forced Seattle to begin using its time outs on defense, to preserve a chance to answer San Francisco’s imminent score.

That score was Purdy’s pass over Woolen to tight end Jake Tonges in the end zone.

Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold then fumbled away Seattle’s final chance inside the Niners’ 15-yard line in the final minute of San Francisco’s 17-13 win.

“I’ve just got to track the ball better,” Woolen said.

He has.

In four months since, Woolen has gone from nearly benched and the subject of trade rumors to more like the Pro Bowl cornerback he was as a rookie in 2022. The long, fast, tall cover man has U-turned his season perhaps more than any other Seahawk entering the NFC West title game Saturday night between Seattle (13-3) and San Francisco (12-4) in Santa Clara, California (5 p.m., ABC and ESPN, KOMO channel 4 locally).

Last weekend in the team’s 27-10 win at Carolina, Woolen played 70% of the Seahawks’ defensive snaps opposite Pro Bowl cornerback Devon Witherspoon. For the first time since October Woolen was in for more plays than Josh Jobe, the third cornerback coach Mike Macdonald has been rotating with Woolen this season.

Now, for Seattle’s biggest game against the recently rampaging 49ers and this month’s playoffs next, Woolen is playing like the starter with Witherspoon. And his playing time suggests as much.

A better Woolen in key matchups against Jauan Jennings, Tonges, plus perhaps Ricky Pearsall and George Kittle (who are both questionable to play) could be a key difference from Saturday’s game and week one for the Seahawks.

What does Macdonald see as the primary reason for Woolen’s resurgence over the latter half of this season?

“Not everybody’s on the same timeline. Their production accelerates or goes on their own speed,” Macdonald said Friday, before the team’s flight left for the Bay Area. “But what I’ve seen is a guy that does all the inputs the way we’re asking. He’s got a great attitude.”

While he’s been in what’s become basically a job-share with Jobe, Woolen has publicly — and coaches say, privately — kept the same, look-forward mentality.

“I just keep to myself, have my head down,” Woolen said during the season. “Bro, I play cornerback, one of the hardest positions there is to play. So I just kept my head down. My teammates got all the faith in me. And I’ve got all faith in my teammates.

“So I’m not worried, at all.”

Macdonald now sounds like he’s about to reward Woolen’s faith and attitude with a larger role in Seattle’s biggest games.

They are huge for Woolen, too. This is the end of his rookie contract. He’s unsigned for 2026.

“He’s starting caliber. He’s big-time. He’s one of the top corners in the league,” Macdonald said.

Seattle Seahawks cornerback Riq Woolen (27) runs back the interception against the Minnesota Vikings during the fourth quarter of the game at Lumen Field, on Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, in Seattle. He would fumble is and be recovered by Minnesota.

Still, Macdonald took him out of his starting role this season. His rate of playing 79% of Seattle’s defensive snaps this season, though still high, is the lowest of his four seasons in the NFL with the team. He played every snap of the opener against the 49ers. That remains the only game he hasn’t come out of this season.

“When you have that type of pedigree and you’re not playing every snap, that’s not an easy thing to do,” Macdonald said. “But to come to work, have a great attitude, be a great teammate and do the things he needs to do to keep accelerating his role, and he did all those things. You’ve got to tip your cap to him.”

The 38-year-old head coach said he’s talked at length with the 26-year-old Woolen about his changed role this season.

“We worked through it: ‘Go through, not around,’” Macdonald said Friday.

“But he’s been great.”

“I can tell you this: He’s playing really good football right now. ...Playing great football. So, really proud of him. Happy for him. It’s great for the Seahawks. Great for him, everybody involved.

“Attention to detail, technique, practice, all those things are on point right now.” So has Woolen gone from targeted on Seattle’s losing plays against San Francisco in the opener to Seahawks starter Saturday night against the 49ers, and in the upcoming playoffs?

“I think we have three starting corners,” Macdonald said.

Cornerback Riq Woolen rides a Green Bay boy’s bike down the road from the Seahawks’ locker room at Lambeau Field to the fields across the street for Seattle’s NFL preseason joint practice with the Packers in Wisconsin Thursday, Aug. 21, 2025.

2nd key: AJ Barner getting more passes

Macdonald said this week offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak has a goal to get the tight end.

Barner is second to Jaxon Smith-Njigba on the Seahawks with 50 receptions and had his sixth touchdown catch of the season last week at Carolina more targets. That would be, more than his average of four passes his way per game.

Doing that Saturday night would make the 49ers have to choose whom to cover Barner with, after already devoting attention to NFL yards receiving leader Smith-Njigba, plus speedy deep threat Rashid Shaheed. Shaheed has recovered from his concussion last weekend. He will play.

This week, 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said after Bay Area reporters asked him about covering Smith-Njigba (113 catches, 1,709 yards, both Seahawks records): “He’s freakin’ unbelievable.”

The Niners didn’t have to make that choice between Smith-Njigba, Shaheed and Barner in the week-one game at Seattle. Shaheed wasn’t on the Seahawks; he was playing for New Orleans, until his trade in early November. Barner had only one catch on just two targets from Darnold in that first meeting with the 49ers, for zero yards. Barner has touchdown catches in each of the last two games. He has four TDs in the last five games.

One thing the Seahawks know: Barner is going to be their hype man on offense in Santa Clara Saturday night.

“Yeah, AJ will get in there and say some stuff. You never know what’s going to come out of his mouth,” Kupp said. “He keeps you on your toes.”

And what does the second-year tight end from Aurora, Ohio, then college football at Indiana and Michigan sounds like in his pep talks?

“Like a dog barking,” Kupp said. “Or, it can be anything. It can be any kind of thing. It’s very loud. He’s definitely got the most nicknames on the team.”

The best: Captain Hook.

Barner won’t divulge how he got that. Not yet, anyway.

“But, I mean, everyone loves him. You love him. You love guys like that,” Kypp said. “He’s all out for his guys play in, play out. Definitely the energy guy.

He says he seeks to be the offense’s Witherspoon, the fiery, boisterous spark.

“Yeah, that’s how I’ve always played,” Barner said.

“I just recognize our offense needs that.”

Seattle Seahawks tight end AJ Barner (88) reacts to a touchdown against the Los Angeles Rams during the third quarter of the game at Lumen Field, on Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Seattle.

3rd key: Sam Darnold staying himself

The Seahawks quarterback said this week he learned from his week-18, NFC North-title game for the top seed last season leading Minnesota to keep the game just the next game.

But this one is different than even that 31-9 loss at Detroit in which the Viking Darnold completed just 18 of 41 passes for 166 yards 12 months ago.

Sunday, Darnold could earn to $2 million in contract incentives for the 2025 season. That’s part of the three-year, $100.5 million deal he signed with Seattle this spring.

He will earn $500,000 if he comes out of Saturday night with a passer rating of 100 for this regular season. He’s at 99.2 right now.

Darnold will get another $500,000 if he finishes this regular season with 28 touchdown passes. He has 25.

He will get another half-million if he throws for 150 or more yards. He’s at 3,850. His trigger for that bonus clause if 4,000 yards for the regular season.

Darnold will get a final $500,000 bonus if he finished this season with a completion rate of at least 67.5%. He at 67.2% right now.

That’s above his base salary of $5.3 million for this season.

The News Tribune has learned Seattle’s 28-year-old QB’s coach from San Clemente High School in southern California Jaime Ortiz plus Troy Kopp, his former San Clemente High offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach are flying in to watch him play Saturday night.

Darnold thinks his Minnesota week-18 game at Detroit last season is going to come in handy for him Saturday night in Santa Clara.

“Great point about going through it last year for myself, just having that experience of going through a game like that,” he said. “But I think the biggest thing is just treating it like another game. Understanding, when you get out there, people make it out to be bigger and it’s primetime, all that stuff. Fans are going to be great. So, understanding that it’s going to have that type of feel to it.

“But once you get out there between the lines, between the whistles, it’s football.”

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (14) walks off the field after the Seattle Seahawks 38-37 overtime victory at Lumen Field, on Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Seattle.

The pick

Nick Emmanwori got hurt on the fifth play of these teams’ first meeting. He was a huge part of Macdonald’s plan for the first 49ers game, then missed almost all of it. The Seahawks believe their do-it-all rookie is uniquely equipped to cover and tackle San Francisco’s Christian McCaffrey. Says here he does.

Darnold, the NFL’s leader in turnovers with 20 in 17 games, doesn’t have one in game 18. San Francisco’s lack of a pass rush with All-Pros Nick Bosa and Fred Warner on injured reserve (the 49ers are last in the league with 18 sacks) means Darnold has more time for Smith-Njigba and now Shaheed deeper down the field than in the first meeting.

That proves decisive in getting Seattle its first division title since 2020, and the number-one seed. The only three times the Seahawks have had the top seed in the playoffs, they’ve played in their only three Super Bowls.

Seahawks 27, 49ers 23

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