Sir Purr
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- Mar 16, 2019
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The Panthers visit the undefeated 49ers on Sunday for Carolina’s toughest test yet. Here are five things to watch in the Week 8 NFC battle.
The battle in the trenches
Head coach Ron Rivera said it best: “Everything’s going to start up front, and that’s just the way it is. This is going to be a physical, point of attack game.”
That’s because this week will pit Panthers star running back Christian McCaffrey against one of the league’s best defenses. The 49ers’ defense ranks second in the NFL in total yards allowed per game (223.5).
A large part of San Fran’s defensive dominance stems from the team’s defensive line, which includes an impressive five first-round picks. With depth like that, it’s easy to see why the defense ranks second in points allowed per game (10.7) and fifth in total sacks (20). Defensive end Dee Ford leads the group with 4.5 sacks, followed closely by rookie defensive end Nick Bosa with four sacks.
The 49ers defense will pose a huge challenge for the Panthers O-line – a unit that’s slowly making its way back to 100 percent. If this week’s practices were any indicator, veteran right guard Trai Turner should be back in action for the Panthers on Sunday. With Turner returning to his spot at right guard, that frees up the Panthers to mix and match as they see fit along the offensive line, as Daryl Williams and rookie Dennis Daley have each seen time at left tackle.
Can the Panthers sustain drives?
With a defense as suffocating as the 49ers, more often than not opposing offenses get stuffed on first and second down, pinning them behind the sticks and forcing long third downs. As a result, most of the 49ers opponents have had trouble sustaining drives, or even getting them started in the first place. San Francisco has forced three-and-outs on 31.3 percent of drives, ranking 2nd in the league. For comparison, the Panthers defense, which already seems dominant enough, has forced three-and-outs on 22.8 percent of drives (7th).
“It’s going to be tough picking up long third downs. That’s going to be a challenge. We’ve got to keep ourselves out of third-and-8, 10-plus,” tight end Greg Olsen said. “That’s kind of a staple of their defense right now, getting off the field. The last couple teams that have played them have barely cracked 50 plays, lot of that has to do with three-and-outs, not staying on the field maintaining drives.”
Olsen is right.
The 49ers D has done an excellent job getting off the field this season, averaging a league low 55.6 defensive plays per game. With that in mind, the Panthers offense knows it will have to not only sustain drives, but capitalize on any scoring opportunities, because they’re sure to be few and far between.
“They’re playing with a lot of confidence right now. They’ve got a lot of things rolling and understandably so,” Olsen said. “Arguably, at least statistically, the top defense in the league in a lot of categories, so we’ve got our work cut out for us, but looking forward to the challenge.”