Panthers Week 5 report card: Can’t blame the team’s defensive woes on workload vs. 49ers
Tale as old as time, song as old as rhyme, Matt Rhule’s Carolina Panthers putting out a stinker in front of their home crowd.
The boo birds were out in full force on Sunday at Bank of America Stadium as the Panthers lost to the San Francisco 49ers, 37-15, with a packed house full of the red shirts and jerseys.
“Fire Matt Rhule” is no longer just a chant, and it’s gone from household phrase among the vocal portion of the fan base (and for some, a popular T-shirt choice) to reality.
Sunday’s blowout only fanned the flames.
As the Observer does every week, it’s time to look at how each individual unit did its respective job against the 49ers.
Here are our grades for each unit following the loss:
Rushing Offense
D. Despite an impressive 18-yard touchdown run by Christian McCaffrey in the third quarter, the Panthers only produced 64 rushing yards on 17 carries (3.8 yards per attempt). With the Panthers struggling to find consistency in the passing game, the 49ers stacked the box and handled McCaffrey’s touches for the majority of the afternoon. Backup running back D’Onta Foreman was given just two carries which resulted in two yards.
The Panthers’ running game was never given the opportunity to stack up runs, as the 49ers were up by at least two scores for the majority of the game. That said, McCaffrey and company weren’t able to take advantage of the opportunities they did have, save for the 18-yard score in the early third quarter.
Passing Offense
C-. While Baker Mayfield’s second-quarter pick-six was a back-breaking play ahead of halftime, the quarterback outperformed his Week 4 showing against the Arizona Cardinals from an accuracy standpoint. Mayfield had a couple of off-the-mark throws — including the pick-six — but for the most part, he put the ball in a place for his playmakers to catch it. The 49ers did an excellent job of breaking up passes with eight passes defensed.
Mayfield finished 20 of 36 for 215 yards and an interception. While that stat line isn’t pretty, Mayfield did make some impressive throws to Robbie Anderson, Shi Smith and D.J. Moore. The Panthers have been hurting for explosive plays on offense, and Mayfield connected with Anderson, Smith and Moore for big plays.
Mayfield injured his ankle in the second quarter and still played the majority of the second half. He deserves credit for his toughness, but the passing game is still clearly a problem. It felt like that unit wasn’t the worst part of the loss to the 49ers.
Rushing Defense
D-. The 49ers ran down the Panthers’ throats on Sunday.
With safeties Jeremy Chinn (IR - hamstring) and Xavier Woods (hamstring) and linebacker Frankie Luvu (shoulder) missing from the lineup, the 49ers bullied the Panthers throughout the game on ground. Running back Jeff Wilson picked up 41 yards on an opening series carry and the 49ers were off the races for the rest of the game.
The Panthers gave up 153 yards and two touchdowns on 29 carries. Wilson picked up 120 and a touchdown on 17 carries. Remember, the Panthers picked up just 64 yards on their identical rushing attempt quota. Veteran Tevin Coleman also picked up 23 yards and a touchdown on eight carries.
It was a no good, very bad day for the run defense. And while the defense has been hung out to dry in recent weeks with heavy workloads, the offense had more snaps in this game. There’s no exhaustion excuse for the group this week.
Passing Defense
C -. While Jimmy Garoppolo had a nice day, the Panthers’ passing offense wasn’t a complete disaster.
Garoppolo completed 18 of 30 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns. He was sacked twice and had four passes broken up.
Defensive end Brian Burns got pressure regularly, and defensive tackle Derrick Brown batted two passes at the line. Again, this wasn’t a solid or good performance from the unit, but the group wasn’t gashed completely like it was against the run.
The 49ers had four passing plays eclipse 20 yards against the Panthers.
Special Teams
B+. Had kicker Eddy Piñeiro made his first field goal attempt — a 43-yarder — in the first half, this would have probably been an “A” performance for the third phase.
The coverage unit held 49ers returner Ray-Ray McCloud to just five yards on his lone kick return. McCloud also only picked up eight yards on two punt returns.
Punter Johnny Hekker averaged 51.3 yards per punt, and he booted a 67-yarder for good measure. Piñeiro rebounded after his first miss and then made three consecutive attempts to finish out the game. Piñeiro has made 11 of 12 field-goal attempts this season for a success rate of 91.6%.
Perhaps the most eye-opening aspect of the special teams unit’s performance was the debut of rookie running back Raheem Blackshear. The speedy playmaker picked up 200 yards on seven kickoff returns, averaging 28.6 yards per return. His highlight of the game came on a 48-yard return in the third quarter.
The cherry on top of the cake for the unit was a blocked field-goal attempt by 49ers kicker Robbie Gould, who left the game with a knee injury. Defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos was able to get his hands up and swat the ball out of the air for the block.
This story was originally published October 10, 2022 at 10:17 AM.
