The picture of perfection with 70 start
Blowout: Solid opponent flattened en route to 70
On the 49ers’ third play Sunday, Jimmy Garoppolo threw a 3rdand5 pass that rocketed off wide receiver Kendrick Bourne’s hands and, instead of caroming to any of several nearby defenders, landed in tight end George Kittle’s hands for a 7yard completion. That was lucky. As for the game’s remaining 58plus minutes? That was all about the 49ers being good. Very, very good. In a performance that elevated already soaring expectations, the 49ers steamrolled Carolina 5113 at Levi’s Stadium to improve to 70 while scoring their most points since 1993.
Running back Tevin Coleman became the third player in franchise history to score four touchdowns, and rookie edge rusher Nick Bosa had four big plays (three sacks, interception) as the 49ers dominated their fourth straight foe. The total score in those games: 49ers 111, opponents 23.
“In the NFL, you never expect to just blow someone out like that,” head coach Kyle Shanahan said. “Especially a good team. They’re a
real good team. That’s a team that will be around at the end of the year.”
The Panthers (43) looked to be a formidable test: They arrived off a bye week on a fourgame winning streak with running back Christian McCaffrey, an MVP candidate, and a defense that led the league in sacks and quarterback hits per game.
Whatever. The redhot visitors quickly became roadkill.
At halftime, the 49ers led 273 and their secondranked defense had more sacks (six) than the Panthers had first downs (five). In addition, Coleman’s production (101 total yards, three touchdowns) dwarfed that of Carolina’s offense (76 yards, one 18yard fieldgoal drive).
“The runs were definitely real open,” Coleman said.
Indeed, Coleman (105 rushing yards) wasn’t touched on his 48yard touchdown run, and on a 19yard scoring scamper, he wasn’t contacted until he reached the 1yard line. And it wasn’t just Coleman: Wide receiver Deebo Samuel wasn’t touched on a 20yard run that began with Garoppolo faking a sweep to wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders before handing off up the middle to Samuel.
After that play, running back Matt Breida gave Shanahan a congratulatory pat on the back. After the game, Carolina safety Tre Boston indirectly gave Shanahan a salute.
“They knew what we were in — they knew the schemes and how they wanted to get to us,” Boston said. “Our hats go off to them.”
Carolina quarterback Kyle Allen, 23, arrived with a 50 record and no interceptions in his career, but Mr. Unbeaten and Unpicked was undone by seven sacks and three interceptions. Allen had a 28.9 passer rating and averaged 4.3 yards on 37 pass attempts.
He was dropped for sacks by Bosa, defensive tackle Arik Armstead (two), nose guard D.J. Jones and defensive end Ronald Blair. Allen threw interceptions to cornerbacks Richard Sherman and Emmanuel Moseley and Bosa, who snagged a screen pass on the last play of the third quarter and returned the pick 46 yards.
“I was dumbfounded,” Armstead said of Bosa’s pick. “I was in shock and awe.”
Meanwhile, Sherman, 31, was in a pregame snit.
Of course, that’s not unusual because the fifthround pick turned AllPro is also brilliant at locating — or imagining — slights. And he had help from wide receiver Dante Pettis in the days leading up to Sunday’s kickoff.
“In the NFL, you never expect to just blow someone out like that. Especially a good team. They’re a real good team. That’s a team that will be around at the end of the year.”
Kyle Shanahan, 49ers head coach, on the Carolina Panthers
“I guess (Pettis is) friends” with Allen, Sherman said. “He’s like, ‘Hey, man, his plan is just to go at you.’ It’s like you’ve got to understand: I’m not new to this. I’m true to this. And my 15 minutes started an hour ago.”
This prompted a natural followup, given Sherman’s personality: Is he sure Pettis wasn’t making that up to get
Sherman worked up?
“No, I’m not completely sure,” Sherman said, laughing. “He knows how I am, too. So he could have not known this kid at all and just said that. … I don’t know if he said it, but Pettis said he said it, so it pissed me off.”
The 49ers took off immediately.
On the game’s second play, justarrived wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders had his first catch on a 4yard out route. Then Sanders, who acquired in a trade from Denver five days earlier, capped the 11play, 75yard drive with a 4yard touchdown pass from Garoppolo.
Sanders, of course, was added before Tuesday’s trade deadline because the 49ers have Super Bowl aspirations that would have been laughable two months ago.
And though the new man was largely quiet on the day — four catches, 25 yards — his new teammates showed why they had a 60 record before he came aboard.
After the evisceration was over, defensive tackle DeForest Buckner arrived the auditorium at Levi’s Stadium sporting a dark green suit for his news conference. On his way to the podium, he was met by Kittle, who had just finished speaking with reporters while wearing a hat, a teamissued Tshirt with cutoff sleeves and his grassstained game pants.
“I look so much better than you,” Kittle said, smiling, to his teammate.
Actually, here’s the truth: All the 49ers look good.
Very, very good.