By Morris Phillips
Two weeks into the 2016 season, the 49ers appear to be an improved club under new coach Chip Kelly. But in the NFL, real credibility begins and ends with star players.
On Sunday, the Carolina Panthers had star players, the 49ers did not.
Cam Newton, the league’s MVP in 2015, threw for 353 yards and four touchdowns as the Panthers raced past the 49ers, 46-27 in Charlotte. One week, after the 49ers shut out the Rams in Santa Clara, they were competitive but outclassed by Carolina and their biggest stars: Newton, tight end Greg Olsen, and intuitive linebacker Luke Kuechly.
Newton had never thrown for more than 353 yards in a game and won. In his 80th NFL start on Sunday, he accomplished that feat after throwing a pick on his initial throw of the day. While the Panthers and Newton gifted the 49ers with four turnovers, which were turned into 20 points, Carolina’s quarterback never relented, hurting the 49ers with deep passes and his legs at critical spots.
Olsen, as good as any pass-catching tight end the 49ers have ever had, came up with five catches for 122 yards, including a career-best 78-yard catch and run that put the Panthers ahead for good, 14-10 in the second quarter.
Kuechly, the NFL Defensive Player of the Year two seasons ago, led the Panthers with 11 tackles and a fourth quarter interception that helped quell a late Niners push for respectability on the scoreboard. Most importantly, Kuechly’s efforts stalled the 49ers’ Carlos Hyde, who ran for just 34 yards and lost a fumble in the third quarter. Hyde, the closest thing the 49ers have to a star player, saw his eight-yard run in the first half rank as his longest of the afternoon.
The 49ers were saddled with a short week of preparation and the cross-country travel, but played competitively in spurts. They led 10-7 in the second quarter, and got within 34-27 in the fourth. But the counters to those two high points, were telling. Trailing just 17-10 at the half, the 49ers went three-and-out on the initial two possessions of the second half, and fell behind 31-10 after three quarters.
After Gabbert and the offense fashioned a response, pulling within seven points of the Panthers with 7:51 remaining after a 75-yard score on a pass to Vance McDonald, things fell apart. Gabbert threw picks on each of the team’s next two possessions, and the Panthers pulled away, scoring the game’s final 12 points. Along with the picks, Gabbert had a star-crossed day, missing several open receivers, often missing high on deeper routes, and throwing too low on the shorter routes that were frequently contested by the active Carolina back seven.
A closer look of the Carolina turnovers, including former 49er Ted Ginn’s muffed kickoff return that set the 49ers up on the Carolina 1-yard line, showed just how generous the Panthers were, and how stingy they were outside those moments. On the possessions following the three Carolina fumbles and Newton’s early pick, the 49ers gained a cumulative 67 yards and turned those possessions into 20 points.
Outside those moments of largesse, the 49ers struggled. Gabbert finished 17 of 36 passing for 243 yards, many of those missed throws leading to Bradley Pinion punts, especially in the telling second and third quarters. The offensive line held up, allowing Gabbert to be sacked just twice, but beyond McDonald’s big play and Torrey Smith’s 28-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter, the 49ers had no big plays.
The longest play of the day outside the two long touchdowns? Shaun Draughn’s 18-yard run play. The 49ers longest pass play outside the two big plays? A pair of 13-yard receptions by Rod Streater and Jeremy Kerley.
Meanwhile, Newton aired it out, showing off his big arm with the results to match. The big hits Newton suffered in the opener at Denver didn’t completely disappear, but the quarterback got solid protection up front and made plays. The 49ers’ defense, while not powerless, had a difficult time keeping up.
“We had over 500 yards of total offense so we obviously did something well,” Coach Ron Rivera said.
The 49ers travel to Seattle next week to face the equally frustrated Seahawks, who managed only a field goal and lost 9-3 to the Rams in their home-opening return to Los Angeles.
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