The San Francisco 49ers kept the winning streak going following a dominant 51-13 win over the Carolina Panthers. Here are 12 takeaways from the Week 8 win.
1. The 49ers opened the game with an 11-play, 75-yard drive that included big plays from George Kittle, Matt Breida, Tevin Coleman and San Francisco's newest receiver Emmanuel Sanders. On 2nd-and-4, Jimmy Garoppolo connected with Sanders at the goal line on a 4-yard touchdown pass to put points on the board early.
2. Panthers quarterback Kyle Allen had not thrown a single interception heading in to Week 8. That changed on Sunday. Allen was looking for Curtis Samuel when Emmanuel Moseley jumped ahead of the receiver for the pick, the first of his career. Moseley stepped in for Ahkello Witherspoon (foot) in Week 3 and has played admirably since.
"A few weeks ago everyone is concerned. Everybody's worried," Richard Sherman said. "'Oh my god we lost Ahkello.' Ahkello is a great player. We cant wait to get him back. But so is E-man. So is Emmanuel. Emmanuel has played at a high level and had very limited opportunities. Finally gave him an opportunity. He read it, he played well and he got his hands on the ball. That's just sound football. These guys are playing great. They deserve all the credit in the world."
3. Kittle wanted to remind fans it's "National Tight End Day." Garoppolo evaded pressure and connected with a wide open Kittle for a 29-yard gain. Fifteen yards were tacked on to the play following an unnecessary roughness penalty against Tre Boston. Two plays later, Garoppolo found Kittle wide open again for a touchdown that was nullified due to an offensive pass interference penalty. Coleman found the end zone on the ensuing play on an 11-yard carry to extend San Francisco's lead, 14-3. Kittle finished the game catching six of his seven targets for 86 yards.
4. Coleman had himself a day, finishing the contest with 105 yards on the ground on 11 carries and three touchdowns to go along with two receptions for 13 yards and another score. His third score of the day came late in the first half as the running back found a hole in the middle of the defense en route to a 48-yard touchdown. His final touchdown came late in the third as the running back took the handoff up the middle for a 1-yard score. Coleman became the first 49ers player with two rushing touchdowns and a receiving score in the same game since Roger Craig in 1988.
5. Nick Bosa ended the Week 7 contest against the Redskins with a big sack. He ended the Panthers first drive with another. On 3rd-and-3, Bosa got to Kyle Allen for a loss of 7 yards and forced a Carolina punt. Bosa also recorded two sacks in the final minutes of the second quarter. His biggest play of the game came on the last play of the third quarter. On 1st-and-10, Allen was looking for running back Reggie Bonnafon when Bosa came down with his first-career interception. Bosa stiff armed a defender en route to a 46-yard return. Bosa is the first 49ers player to have three sacks and an interception in the same game. He is also the youngest player in the NFL to ever do so.
"It was pretty damn impressive," Shanahan said postgame. "I'm sure when I watch the tape it will even look better. The play he made on the interception was one of the more impressive plays I've seen from a d-lineman. Thought he should've scored, but it's always nice when they don't and they let the offense score too. It's alright."
6. Richard Sherman also came up with his third interception of the season. Under pressure on 3rd-and-12, Allen was looking for D.J. Moore when the ball floated directly into the hands of the veteran corner. Sherman now has 35 interceptions on his career, the most among all active players since 2011.
7. Garoppolo was looking for Kittle when Luke Kuechly jumped the route on the first play of the 49ers second drive. On 3rd-and-5 on the Panthers ensuing drive, Allen was flushed out of the pocket and sacked by Arik Armstead. The drive resulted in a Joey Slye 41-yard field goal.
8. Deebo Samuel got in on the scoring action, taking a 20-yard handoff to the house. Samuel slipped past Carolina's defense for his second-career touchdown. Samuel finished the game hauling in all three of his targets for 19 yards and two carries for 29 yards and a touchdown.
9. Late in the fourth quarter, Raheem Mostert took a handoff from Nick Mullens, who entered the game during garbage time, for a 41-yard touchdown. San Francisco put up 232 yards on the ground compared to 130 from Christian McCaffrey and the Panthers offense.
10. The 49ers finished the contest with seven sacks on the day. D.J. Jones and Ronald Blair III both recorded a sack a piece and Arik Armstead accounted for a pair. The defense limited Carolina to just 2-of-13 on third down and 3.7 yards per play.
11. Jeff Wilson Jr. went down in the fourth quarter but managed to walk off the field under his own power. He suffered a stinger and a head injury, however cleared concussion protocol according to the head coach. Matt Breida suffered an ankle injury and attempted to return to the game. According to Shanahan, he is unsure about his status in the short turnaround against the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday night.
12. Garoppolo finished the day 18-of-22 for 175 yards, two touchdowns and an interception for a 111.2 passer rating.
