Dan Quinn has proved to be the 12th man for the Seahawks in his first season as Seattle’s defensive coordinator.
The first-year Seahawks coach’s defense forced 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick into committing three turnovers late in Sunday’s game as Seattle punched its way into Super Bowl XLVIII with its 23-17 victory against San Francisco in the NFC Championship game.
Quinn, Florida’s defensive coordinator from 2011-12, saw his defensive unit continue the dominance it displayed all season, limiting San Francisco to 12 or fewer yards on seven of its 11 drives on Sunday.
After a back-and-forth game through the first three quarters, the Seahawks took their first lead of the game with 13:44 left on the clock. Quinn’s defense took control from there.
With the 49ers down by three points and fewer than eight minutes left in the game, Kaepernick threw a pass intended for receiver Anquan Boldin that was intercepted by Seattle safety Kam Chancellor.
The Seahawks would take four minutes off the clock and kick a field goal on the ensuing possession to widen their lead to 23-17 with 3:37 remaining.
With one chance left to win the game, Kaepernick looked poised. He orchestrated an eight-play, 60-yard drive to bring the 49ers to the Seahawks’ 18-yard line.
But with 30 seconds left on the clock, Kaepernick dropped back and threw a deep pass to the right side of the endzone, looking for Michael Crabtree. Cornerback Richard Sherman deflected the pass into the arms of linebacker Malcolm Smith, effectively ending the game.
Since Quinn returned to the Seahawks after serving as their defensive line coach in 2009 and 2010, Seattle’s defense has improved in almost every statistical category. When the regular season ended, the Seahawks ranked first in total yards (273.6) and total passing yards (172.0) allowed per game; they also led the NFL with 39 turnovers — eight more than they forced in 2012.
While working at Florida in between stints with Seattle, Quinn led the Gators to a top-10 ranking in total defense and scoring defense in both 2011 and 2012. The Gators gave up an average of 293.1 yards per game and 17.4 points per game during the two years he helmed the defense, numbers that increased this season to 314.3 and 21.1, respectively, for Florida.
During Quinn’s tenure at UF, opposing defenses converted only 29.1 percent of their third-down attempts; that number increased to 34 percent in 2013.
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San Francisco 49ers’ Colin Kaepernick fumbles as he is hit by Seattle Seahawks’ Cliff Avril during the second half of the NFC Championship game Sunday in Seattle.
