49ers need to get back to old school football to defeat Seahawks

Thursday Night Football at The Stick against an overmatched division rival would usually be a good time, but the San Francisco 49ers will have to be all business as they face the Seattle Seahawks in Week 7.

The Niners are coming off their worst defeat of the season after suffering an embarrassing 26-3 defeat at the hands of the New York Giants. It's time to go back to what got them the status as one of the NFL's elite teams -- that's defense.

Not just defense in the traditional sense, but gritty, smash-mouth defense that intimidated opponents and garnered comparisons to the 1985 Chicago Bears.

Though it didn't look anything like it during Sunday's embarrassing home loss, the Niners are the team with that type of talent. They still boast the league's No. 1 defense, allowing just 275.8 yards per game and will go against a mediocre 29th ranked offense. The 49ers will need to put the pressure on rookie quarterback Russell Wilson early and often and force him into making mistakes.

That type of defense is predicated on pressure and stopping the run, the very foundation that the Niners have built their reputation on. They'll have their work cut out for them in that department as Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch is one of the league's best and toughest runners, averaging a respectable 4.3 yards per carry on 549 rushing attempts. He's the driving force behind Seattle's seventh ranked ground attack and will be the key to their offensive success.

It's time for that famous corps of 49ers linebackers -- NaVorro Bowman, Patrick Willis, Ahmad Brooks and Aldon Smith to turn into the intimidators that caused opponents to fold in games past. They are the key to regaining supremacy in the NFC West, and they'll have the chance to do it on a national stage with the world watching and waiting to see how they'll bounce back from an awful defeat.