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SEATTLE -- When the game was on the line and San Francisco's struggling offense needed to move the ball, Mike Evans stepped up and showed why the 49ers went after him so hard this offseason.
Brock Purdy found Evans repeatedly on the go-ahead touchdown drive and then led the Niners down the field again for a 43-yard field goal by Eddy Pineiro with 1:56 to play that gave San Francisco a 32-29 win over the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday in a playoff rematch.
The win for the 49ers (5-0) offered a small bit of payback for their two late-season losses to Seattle (3-2) last season, including a 41-6 defeat in the divisional round of the playoffs with a short-handed roster.
San Francisco was healthier on defense for the first meeting this season, and also had Evans after signing him in March. That was a big reason why Purdy was able to deliver late for the undefeated Niners.
"He's a game changer," Purdy said. "True X receiver that if you get the right look and stuff and you give him a chance, he can make defenses pay. I thought today he did a great job with that, going up and getting the ball multiple times and just using his length and everything to create some separation. So as a quarterback, any time I have an (opportunity) to go to him, it always feels good."
The game featured an NFL season-high seven combined turnovers, an ejection of 49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw and no touchdown drives of more than 25 yards before San Francisco took over trailing 26-21 late in the third quarter.
"That's what we expected, honestly," Niners linebacker Fred Warner said. "It was going to be a heavyweight bout. Seattle, they're the guys who won it all last year and they're ones that you have to go through."
Purdy and Evans responded with an impressive touchdown drive against the vaunted Seahawks defense, connecting four times for 75 yards