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Seahawks can clinch third straight division title

Dec 12, 2006 - 6:05 PM San Francisco (5-8) at Seattle (8-5) 8:00 pm EST

SEATTLE (Ticker) -- The Seattle Seahawks can clinch their third straight NFC West title on Thursday night when they host the San Francisco 49ers in a battle of division rivals.

Injuries sidelined reigning NFL rushing champion Shaun Alexander for six games and Pro Bowl quarterback Matt Hasselbeck for four games, but the Seahawks are still on the verge of making the playoffs for the fifth time in Mike Holmgren's eight seasons as coach.

Getting back to the Super Bowl will be difficult for the defending NFC champions. Last season, the Seahawks had home-field advantage throughout the playoffs and defeated Washington and Carolina before losing to Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XL at Detroit.

However, Seattle may not even get a first-round bye this time because Chicago (11-2) and New Orleans (9-4) have better records in the conference.

The Seahawks didn't have Hasselbeck, who was out with a sprained knee ligament, in a 20-14 loss at San Francisco on November 19. Backup Seneca Wallace filled in and threw for 252 yards and two touchdowns, but was also intercepted three times - two of them by cornerback Walt Harris.

That game was especially memorable for Frank Gore, who rushed for a franchise-record 212 yards on 24 carries for the 49ers. A third-round pick in 2005 out of Miami, Gore leads the NFC with 1,347 rushing yards and has 49 catches for 384 yards.

However, since that win over Seattle, the Niners have dropped three in a row to essentially fall out of the playoff race.

Last week, Gore rushed for 130 yards and a touchdown, but Alex Smith completed just 12-of-29 passes and was intercepted twice in a 30-19 loss to Green Bay.

The Seahawks lost three fumbles - one each by Hasselbeck, Alexander and fullback Mack Strong - in a 27-21 loss at Arizona last week. Alexander was held to 76 yards on 22 carries, but Hasselbeck was sharp, completing 20-of-28 passes for 243 yards and three touchdowns.

Two-time Pro Bowl linebacker Julian Peterson will face his former team for the second time. Peterson signed a seven-year contract worth $54 million with Seattle last March after spending his first six seasons with the Niners.