Jimmy Garoppolo and the San Francisco 49ers are atop the NFC West.
Garoppolo turned in a solid game today in Carolina, with two touchdowns and no interceptions, as the 49ers cruised to an easy 37-15 win over the Panthers.
The win improves the 49ers to 3-2 and first place in the NFC West. The 49ers are 2-0 within the division and currently own the tiebreaker over all their division foes.
Jeff Wilson had a good game running the ball for the 49ers, topping 100 yards, and Garoppolo spread the ball around, with six different receivers catching multiple passes.
The downside of the game for the 49ers was injuries: Defensive end Nick Bosa, kicker Robbie Gould and cornerback Emmanuel Moseley all exited with injuries.
Baker Mayfield played another ugly game for the Panthers, who just can’t do much of anything offensively. Late in the game Mayfield was benched for PJ Walker. Carolina is now 1-4, and the biggest question is how much longer head coach Matt Rhule can keep his job.
Rhule was brought in to build a winning culture in Carolina, and he hasn’t even come close to that. If anything, the Panthers look like they’ve gone backward since Rhule arrived. Rhule was well-regarded as a college coach, and he may actually prefer to get fired now so that he can get one of the open college jobs.
Five games into the season may seem too early to talk about that, but this Panthers team looked today like it’s going nowhere. The 49ers, on the other hand, look like they’re going places.
