The Carolina Panthers (6-6) limped out of Levi’s Stadium on Monday night after suffering a 20-9 loss to the San Francisco 49ers (8-4), in a game that was filled to the brim with opportunities.
There’s much to review and discuss following the contest, but first, let’s take a look at three instant takeaways from the disappointing result in front of a national audience on Monday Night Football.
Carolina Panthers’ Running Backs Combine for 9 Rush Attempts
When Bryce Young set a franchise record in Week 11 for most passing yards in a game against the Atlanta Falcons, the Panthers’ running backs carried the ball 24 times for 68 yards. Despite averaging a meager 2.8 yards per rush, the commitment to a balanced attack facilitated opportunities and benefited the entire offensive operation.
On Monday night, Carolina backs combined for just nine carries (Rico Dowdle with six, Chuba Hubbard with the other three). The duo produced 54 yards at an average of six yards per attempt.
When asked whether the approach was by design or any other reason in his post-game press conference, Panthers’ head coach Dave Canales explained, “I just felt like building off of what happened last week, and just taking a step forward with the pass game, I saw some opportunities.”
Canales would go on to say, “And then in the second half, at a certain point when the score becomes what it is, it’s like ‘ok, we’re in a two-score game, we’ve got to move it a little bit here and throw the ball around.”
Dowdle and Hubbard combined for six carries in the first half. Carolina trailed by seven points at the half, but received the opening kickoff after the intermission. The first call in the third quarter was a toss play to Rico Dowdle, a concept that has been successful for Carolina, which the NFC’s leading rusher ripped off for a 17-yard gain.
The Panthers never trailed by more than 14 points in the game, so it’s an unusual view to say that the calls needed to lean pass-heavy due to the game flow.
Carolina didn’t execute a designed run play at all in the fourth quarter, despite Canales admitting, “the run game seemed to be hitting pretty good.”
The Panthers’ Defense Forced Turnovers Early, Injuries Forced Starters Out
Cornerback Jaycee Horn was one of three Panthers’ defenders who couldn’t bring 49ers Jauan Jennings down on the game’s first touchdown, a 12-yard catch and run by the San Francisco wideout. But after that play, Horn was a man on a mission.
Two of the next three drives by the San Francisco offense were upended by Jaycee Horn interceptions.
On his first takeaway, Horn had sticky coverage on Jennings, who was being targeted deep to the middle of the field, but the Carolina defender stepped in front and picked it off at the 30-yard line. That set the Panthers’ offense up for an opportunity to get on the scoreboard, but instead, they turned the ball over on their own when Bryce Young intercepted it in the end zone.
The second interception from Horn was a masterful play while in zone coverage. Brock Purdy was targeting Ricky Pearsall on an in-breaking route, but Horn read the quarterback’s eyes the whole way and peeled off from the opposite side of the field to undercut the throw and return it into 49ers territory.
The drive in between the two interceptions from Horn was also finished off by another takeaway, this time on a terrific high-pointing snag by Mike Jackson in the end zone. Jackson continued his commendable season-long play on Monday. He entered Week 12 as the No. 22-ranked player in PFSN’s CBi metric.
Horn did not play in the second half of the game after sustaining a concussion. Starting linebacker Claudin Cherelus was also forced out with a concussion. Corey Thornton kicked outside in relief of Horn before picking up an ankle injury of his own that resulted in the rookie undrafted free agent missing the remainder of the game. Thornton was seen with a soft cast on his left foot, per Mike Kaye of The Charlotte Observer.
The Befuddling Case of Dave Canales’ Offensive Planning
The 49ers came into Monday night missing their All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner (ankle). Then his backup, Tatum Bethune (ankle), was ruled out after being unable to participate in any of the week’s practices.
The outside cornerback duo of Renardo Green and Deommodore Lenoir is a strength of the San Francisco defense. The intermediate depth of the middle of the field should have been an area to exploit, in theory, knowing these factors coming into the game.
Bryce Young completed just two passes of over ten yards, attempting only eight. One completion resulted in the 29-yard touchdown strike to Tetairoa McMillan. In the Week 11 pass-game breakout, Young went 11-16, including two touchdowns in passes of the same criteria.
The passing offense targeted tight ends just twice in Week 12. The only completion was a six-yard pitch-and-catch to JaTavion Sanders.
With the area of weakness being the second level and the linebackers, a commitment to the ground game and the incorporation of the tight ends into the mix would have been a logical and strategic conclusion.
Furthermore, the ineptitude against the blitz and man coverages was truly befuddling. The depth and timing of the concepts against pressure simply didn’t align or create advantages and quick answers for Young. Dropped passes and awareness blunders negated potential first-down conversions on multiple occasions.
Per Next Gen Stats, Young was 2-7 for 11 yards, while throwing both interceptions against man coverage. Out of six third-down dropbacks, San Francisco blitzed on four. Young was 1-3 for -3 yards on early down blitzes by the 49ers.
Answering another question regarding the offense’s inconsistency, Canales stressed, “Yeah, it’s just fundamentals. Fundamentals and execution.”
The second-year Panthers’ head coach isn’t wrong with that assessment. But it’s fair to wonder how much the weekly game plan is putting his players in the best positions to find success. And exactly how equipped is the staff and team to recalibrate strategy in-game?