SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Earl Thomas didn't want to overstate the significance of what the Seattle Seahawks' defense did Sunday. He knows whom it came against -- a one-win team with a rookie quarterback making his fifth career start.

Michael Bennett didn't want to get ahead of himself, either. He knows what awaits -- a difficult closing stretch that begins at home next week against the 10-1 Philadelphia Eagles.

Indeed, the Seahawks' defense is going to be challenged much more over the remainder of the season than it was in a 24-13 win against the San Francisco 49ers and their overmatched quarterback, C.J. Beathard. Still, this was a sound defensive performance that shouldn't be completely overlooked because of the caliber of the opponent.

"I think we were very dominant," Thomas said.

Of several things coach Pete Carroll must have liked about the way his defense played while holding the 49ers to 280 total yards and keeping them out of the end zone until the game's final play, he seemed most impressed by how it bottled up Carlos Hyde. The 49ers running back ripped off a 61-yard run and finished with 124 yards when the teams first met in Week 2, but there was no such trouble for the Seahawks this time.

In another sign of how far their run defense has come since some uncharacteristic struggles early in the season, Hyde managed only 47 yards on 16 carries Sunday. Seattle allowed 84 rushing yards in all, barely above its per-game average since Week 4.

"I thought all day long it was really good and really solid, and the kind of consistency that we hope to get. We like this team," Carroll said of the 49ers. "These guys know how to run the football, they know how to move around, they've got a good offensive scheme that challenges us and we had to work our way through it, and I think the guys did a good job."

Carroll then mentioned the fact that several Seahawks played -- and played well -- despite injuries that either limited them in practice or kept them out entirely. Linebacker Bobby Wagner was one.

The bad hamstring that kept him sidelined him for three days last week looked fine as he led Seattle with eight tackles and intercepted a pass in unusual fashion. Wagner stripped the ball from receiver Trent Taylor as he caught it -- or, as Thomas put it, "he just took the dude's lunch money" -- then corralled it while falling to the ground.

Wagner also had two of Seattle's 13 quarterback hits, the last of which forced Beathard to give way to Jimmy Garoppolo for the final 67 seconds of the game. Seattle sacked Beathard three times and put him under duress on 14 of his 43 dropbacks, according to ESPN Stats & Information. That pressure rate of just under 33 percent was better than the Seahawks' season average of 24 percent.

Beathard and Garoppolo combined for 196 yards passing, marking the second straight week Seattle -- playing without Richard Sherman and Kam Chancellor -- has held its opponent under 200. What Matt Ryan lacked in passing yards (195) he made up for in efficiency Monday night (two touchdowns, no interceptions), and who knows what would have happened in this game if it were Garoppolo starting and not his placeholder. But even with those qualifiers, Seattle's pass defense has held up about as well could reasonably be expected with Sherman and Chancellor sidelined.

How good can the Seahawks still be without those two?

"I feel like you saw it today," Thomas said. "Obviously, it wasn't the best quarterback per se, but anytime you play in the NFL, it's going to be tough."

The quarterbacks -- and the opponents in general -- are about to get tougher. Seattle (7-4) opened as a rare home underdog for next week's game against the Eagles (-4.5), who are the hottest team in the league and have an MVP candidate in Carson Wentz. The second-year quarterback leads the NFL in touchdown passes with 28 after throwing three more Sunday.

"We've got a tough schedule these last five games, really tough," Bennett said. "You play against Philly. What, did they win today?"

Yep, by 28 points over Chicago for their ninth straight win.

"I'm not surprised," Bennett said.

The Seahawks will then make a cross-country trip to Jacksonville for an always-difficult 10 a.m. PT kickoff against the Jaguars (7-4). After that, they're back home for a rematch against the Los Angeles Rams (8-3), who entered Week 12 ranked second in scoring behind Philadelphia. The Seahawks held the Rams to 10 points in their Week 5 win and might need a season sweep in order to win the NFC West, which the Rams lead by a game.

The Cowboys' sputtering offense will have Ezekiel Elliott back by the time Dallas (5-6) hosts Seattle on Christmas Eve, so even that game won't be easy.

The Seahawks might not be favored by more than three points -- if at all -- in any game until they host Arizona in Week 17.

"That's a tough schedule right there," Bennett said.

The Seahawks are seventh in the NFC playoff picture, with Atlanta holding a tiebreaker for the sixth and final spot by virtue of its win against Seattle last week. They have their work cut out for them as they try to reach the postseason for the sixth straight year.

"It's about staying the course, keeping it steady and running together and just being together in this next part of the season and staying on the grind, because we play a lot of tough games," Bennett said. "We've got to play good on special teams, we've got to be good on defense and good on offense. That's the key."