McCaffrey: 92 all-purpose yards
PANTHERS 23, 49ERS 3
Christian McCaffrey’s debut was solid. Kyle Shanahan’s? Not so much.
McCaffrey, a former Valor Christian High School and Stanford star and son of former Broncos wide receiver Ed McCaffrey, compiled 92 all-purpose yards in his first game as a pro. He rushed 13 times for 47 yards, caught a team-best five Cam Newton passes for 38 yards and returned three punts for 7 yards Sunday to help the Carolina Panthers defeat the San Francisco 49ers 23-3.
Shanahan, son of former Broncos coach Mike Shanahan and a former Cherry Creek player, was in his first NFL game as a head coach for the 49ers. He previously was the offensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons.
McCaffrey, the eighth player selected in the draft, had a long run of 11 yards and a long reception of 16 yards. But he also lost a fumble in the fourth quarter.
“I didn’t play as well as I would’ve liked to, but anytime you can get a win, we’re happy,” McCaffrey said.
Newton threw a pair of touchdown passes after San Francisco turnovers and the Carolina defense shut down Shanahan’s offense.
Newton threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to Russell Shepard in the first half after a fumble by Brian Hoyer, then a 9-yard touchdown to Jonathan Stewart in the third quarter after Luke Kuechly intercepted Hoyer.
That helped the Panthers get off to a good start in the season opener following last year’s disappointing 6-10 finish. Despite the touchdowns, Newton did not look particularly sharp after playing just one series in the preseason as he recovered from surgery to repair a partially torn rotator cuff.
Newton was off-target on numerous throws, including missing a wide-open Ed Dickson in the end zone in the first half. Carolina had to settle for a field goal on that drive. Newton finished 14-for-25 for 171 yards.
“The quarterback obviously is still working on his timing,” Panthers coach Ron Rivera said. “He missed a couple of throws. He knows it. He’s upset with himself. I had to talk him off a ledge.”
Newton’s mistakes didn’t matter against a Niners team that didn’t look much improved from last year’s outfit that tied a franchise worst with 14 losses. That led to the firing of coach Chip Kelly and general manager Trent Baalke.
San Francisco, which brought in Shanahan and GM John Lynch, was held scoreless in the first half of the opener for the first time in 40 years.
The Niners finished with just 217 yards of offense.