Nov 25, 2025
3 min read
It was McCaffrey's first meeting against the Panthers, who traded him to the 49ers in 2022.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Although the battered and bruised San Francisco 49ers haven't had many cosmetic wins this season, they have found ways to win.
It happened again Monday night, as the Niners overcame a first-half miscue to beat the Carolina Panthers 20-9 in what looked to be a decisive game in the NFC playoff chase.
With the win, the 49ers improved to 8-4, including 7-2 against NFC opponents.Carolina fell to 6-6 and 4-3 in NFC games.
According to the head of football, the night players have boosted their expectations of the slocaff from 86% to 91.3% and set the advantage of the panthers when they cast.
Although Quarbay Brock Sound offers more opportunities to those who are leading and perhaps even assertive, China's victims are once again on the mark.
Niners safety Ji'Ayir Brown showed the biggest spark, coming off a pair of interceptions, one in the end zone and five tackles.
It's the first time since Week 3 that the Niners have gone on back-to-back winning streaks.They travel to Cleveland to face the Browns on Sunday.
San Francisco 49ers (8-4)
Stat to know: 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey insisted last week that facing his former team for the first time since being traded in 2022 wouldn't be much different than most other games.
Statistically speaking, this was true.McCAffrey had over 100 scrimmage yards for the 10th time this season and broke the one-time record the Niners set in 2023.
McCaffrey finished with 142 scrimmage yards on 31 catches.
What to make of the QB's performance: For whatever reason, Purdy continued to struggle on "Monday Night Football."Against the Panthers, he threw three interceptions in the first half, the second time he has done so in his career, while the other came against Baltimore at MNF in 2023. In five career starts Monday night, he has thrown 11 interceptions.
Purdy rebounded a bit in the second half as coach Kyle Shanahan made some easy throws and short passes.Purdy finished 23 of 32 for 193 yards with 1 touchdown and 3 picks.But it was still a concerning performance for Purdy after an encouraging return from his right big toe injury last week against Arizona.
Most surprising performance: The defense.Although the offense spent much of the first half committing turnovers and near turnovers, the Niners' defense repeatedly answered the bell, allowing three fewer points on those possessions.The Panthers managed just 230 yards and 5.3 yards per game, including a season low in yards (72) and first downs (three) in the first half.
With tight end Nick Bosa and linebacker Fred Warner missing, much has been done for the offense to carry the load, but San Francisco's defense delivered when it was needed Monday night.- Nick Wagoner
Next game: vs. Cleveland Browns (1 p.m. ET, Sunday)
Carolina Appetite (6-6)
Carolina won the South for the first time this season in 2017, but Bryant's franchise-rushing 448 has slowed down in Atlanta this season.
The loss left the Panthers half a game behind Tampa Bay (6-5) in the division with their next game against the NFC-leading Los Angeles Rams (8-2).The Panthers close with two of three games against the struggling Bucs, but have the red-hot Seahawks (8-3) in their midst.
Tampa Bay, meanwhile, enters the easiest part of its schedule against the Arizona Cardinals, New Orleans Saints and Falcons.
The Panthers' confidence in Young should be a concern after the Niners became the third team in a row to shut down Carolina's running game (69 yards on 13 carries).
What to think of the QB's performance: The first half set the tone.Young had a lower passer rating (25.0) than the 49ers' Purdy (48.4), although Purdy threw three interceptions.As a result, the Panthers had the fewest receiving yards (72) and first downs (three) of any half this season.Young's numbers were slightly better in the second half, but his second interception with 6:27 remaining essentially sealed Carolina's fate and left them 0-2 in MNF and 0-3 in primetime games.
Biggest hole in game plan: Stopping former Panthers running back McCaffrey You'd think defensive coordinator Ajiro Oro would have been preparing the defense to stop the player Carolina dealt to the 49ers midway through the 2022 season, but McCaffrey had 142 rushing yards, including 12.
Stats to know: The Panthers were the first team to get on the road in the first half (10-3) despite getting three defensive interceptions from the Browns 2021 (Week 12 at Ravens).Before Monday's game, Cleveland was the only team to do so in the past 10 years.- David Newton
Next Game – Los Angeles Rams (4:25 p.m., Sunday)
