Week 12 - Playing at home in front of the Levi's Stadium faithful for a brief 1-game stay before hitting the road again, the (7-4) San Francisco 49ers would play host to the upstart (6-5) Carolina Panthers under the bright lights of Monday Night Football. With two quarterbacks coming off big games the previous week for their respective teams, Monday night's game would be the complete opposite of that as San Francisco's Brock Purdy and Carolina's Bryce Young struggled mightily and threw for a combined five interceptions on the night. A week removed from logging a mistake-free ballgame against his hometown Arizona Cardinals in which Purdy threw for an even 200 yards and 3 touchdowns in his first game back after missing six weeks, he would have his worst outing of the season by throwing three interceptions, all in the first half and on three straight possessions which led to some unhappy fans that let their feelings be heard in the form of boo's. Luckily, Purdy wasn't the only signal-caller on the night that struggled to get much of anything going thru the air. Young who had a career game a week earlier by throwing for a Panthers franchise record 448 yards passing to go with 3 touchdowns and no interceptions, had plenty of opportunities to put his team in a position to win or at the very least put up more points with some help from his defense.
It wasn't all bad QB play, however, as things actually got off to a great for the 49er offense that began the game in possession of the ball and embarked on their longest opening-drive of the season. Controlling the ball for 8-minutes and 43-seconds and running 15-plays, Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan dialed up a career-high nine touches on the opening-drive for running back and former first round pick of the Panthers Christian McCaffrey. Facing his former team for the first time since being traded to San Francisco in 2022, it would be a busy night for McCaffrey who helped the 49ers march their way into the red zone where Purdy found receiver Jauan Jennings who broke a pair of tackles before making it into the end zone for the early score. Looking equally as impressive on defense, the 49ers forced a three-and-out punt on Carolina's first possession. Unfortunately, they would give the ball away just one play later on Purdy's first of three interceptions. Taking over with prime field position, the Panthers made it to the 1-yard line where they would setup shop on first and goal. Electing to pass, Young was picked off in the end zone by 49ers safety Ji'Ayir Brown who read the play perfectly on his way to having a career night.
Putting together what appeared to be another promising drive, Purdy and the offense marched to the Carolina 28-yard line before he launched a deep ball into the end zone for Ricky Pearsall that was intercepted for a touchback. The 49er defense would hold the Panthers to another three and out but they would not be so lucky a third time around when Purdy became the first quarterback this season to throw three interceptions in the first half of a game. Again, on a pass intended for Pearsall, Carolina cornerback Jaycee Horn jumped in front of the receiver for his second interception of the night. The third time would be a charm for the Panthers who finally turned a turnover into points as kicker Ryan Fitzgerald got Carolina on the board with a field goal. Brock Purdy would shake off the rust with a much cleaner performance the rest of the way by avoiding any more turnovers, although he escaped throwing another interception or two as he and his receivers continued to miscommunicate on several plays through either poor timing or incorrect routes throughout the night.
Kicker Matt Gay who was signed on Thursday after being cut by the Washington Commanders last Monday, made an impressive first impression with the 49ers by going 2-for-2 in field goals, including one before the half to give San Francisco a 10-3 halftime lead. Opening the second half with another stellar drive, McCaffrey capped things off with a 12-yard receiving touchdown to make it a 17-3 ballgame. Facing a 14-point hole in the final moments in the third quarter, the Panthers put together their most successful drive of the night, scoring on a 29-yard touchdown pass to rookie receiver Tetairoa McMillan. But an unsuccessful two-point conversion would keep it an 8-point game. After answering with their second field goal of the night, the 49ers would increase to 11. Looking to inch closer midway thru the fourth quarter, Bryce Young would be intercepted for a second time, again by San Francisco's Ji'Ayir Brown who would play his way to NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors.
In a last-ditch effort to pull off the comeback, the Panthers would miss on a 57-yard field goal attempt from Fitzgerald which allowed the Niners to run the clock and secure the 20-9 victory and their 54th win on Monday Night Football in franchise history, tying the Pittsburgh Steelers for the most all-time. Had the Panthers won on Monday, they would've moved into sole possession of first place in the NFC South. Instead, they drop to 6-6 and fall into second place behind the (6-5) Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Meanwhile, the 49ers keep pace in the crowded and mighty NFC Western Division by improving to 8-4 on the year. Leading the way for the 49ers once more would be Christian McCaffrey who logged his 38th career game with 50 rushing yards and 50 receiving yards, 2nd most all-time behind only Marshall Faulk's 41, after finishing with 89 and 53, respectively. CMC also became the third running back in NFL history to have 50+ receiving yards in at least 50 career games, joining Larry Centers (55) and Faulk (50). Tight-end George Kittle would lead all receivers with 6 receptions for 78 of Brock Purdy's 193 yards.
What got almost as much attention as the win itself was what happened after the game ended when a scuffle broke out between Jauan Jennings and Panthers safety Tre'von Moehrig. The two had to be separated when both teams met near midfield to exchange pleasantries as Jennings was seen throwing a punch at Moehrig after the game following a low blow Jennings took from Moehrig earlier in the game. Jennings would be commended by coach Shanahan for waiting until after the game to express his frustration opposed to during the game and costing his team a penalty or possible ejection. Moehrig attempted to defend his actions in a postgame interview by explaining Jennings was talking trash, but he would ultimately be fined and suspended one game by the commissioner's office for his actions.
Week 13 Preview: Hitting the road to take on the (3-8) Cleveland Browns, the (8-4) 49ers are coming off back-to-back wins for the first time since starting the season 3-0. They'll try to make it three straight wins when they face off against rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders who is coming off his first career win on the road over the Las Vegas Raiders in his first career start. Seeking their first win in Cleveland since 1984, the 49ers will try to make Sanders' first start in front of the home crowd a rough homecoming. With San Francisco currently holding a Wild Card position as the No. 7 seed in the NFC standings, their playoff aspirations can increase drastically with another win on Sunday. With arguably the best defensive player in the league in Myles Garrett looking to make things miserable for Brock Purdy, the 49ers will need to be much sharper on offense if they plan to end their drought in "The Land." With weather conditions expected to be poor come kickoff time with wind and rain in the forecast, we may be in store for another heavy dose of run plays from running backs Christian McCaffrey and Brian Robinson.
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