49ers quarterback Brock Purdy is having a nightmare of a first half, but his team still leads the Panthers.
Purdy has thrown interceptions on three straight drives, including a pair of passes that cornerback Jaycee Horn has picked off. Horn’s second one set the Panthers up at the 49ers’ 33-yard line and Carolina picked up two first downs before a pass to running back Chuba Hubbard lost three yards on a third down from the 4-yard line.
Ryan Fitzgerald came in for a field goal and the Panthers cut the 49ers’ lead to 7-3 with 2:28 left in the first half.
Horn’s first interception set the Panthers up in the red zone and they drove the ball to the 1-yard line before quarterback Bryce Young’s ill-advised throw to tight end Mitchell Evans was picked off by 49ers safety Ji’Ayir Brown.
The 49ers’ offense made it look easy tonight in San Francisco.
After receiving the opening kickoff, the 49ers went on a 15-play, 72-yard drive that ended with a 12-yard touchdown pass from Brock Purdy to Jauan Jennings.
Purdy completed six of seven passes for 33 yards on the drive, while Christian McCaffrey ran six times for 28 yards. McCaffrey also caught three passes on the opening drive, so he already has nine touches, nine minutes into the game.
Now Bryce Young and the Panthers’ offense will try to answer.
Shedeur Sanders became the first Browns rookie quarterback to win his first NFL start since 1995 on Sunday and he’ll get a chance to make it two in a row in Week 13.
Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski announced on Monday that Sanders will start against the 49ers. It will be Sanders’ first home start.
Sanders moved into the starting lineup because Dillon Gabriel suffered a concussion in the team’s Week 11 loss to the Ravens. Stefanski said that Gabriel has cleared the concussion protocol, but the team is sticking with Sanders after their 24-10 win over the Raiders.
Sanders was 11-of-20 for 209 yards, a touchdown and an interception. The touchdown came when running back Dylan Sampson broke free for a 66-yard score on a screen pass and Sanders set up another touchdown with a 52-yard strike to rookie wideout Isaiah Bond.
It had been so long since a Browns quarterback won his first start that it wasn’t even the Browns. It happened for the team this is now the Ravens.
In 1995, Eric Zeier won his first start with the former Browns. All 17 new Browns rookies who started in their first NFL seasons lost.
Immediately after the game, Sanders was enthusiastic. “After one week of practice,” he told CBS, smiling. “Imagine, you know, what a full offseason look like.”
During his post-game press conference, Sanders was defiant.
“A lot of people want to see me fail,” Sanders said. “It ain’t gonna happen, you know? It’s ain’t gonna happen.”
For his debut, Sanders completed 11 of 20 passes for 209 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. And, yes, the defense played a major role, with 10 sacks of Raiders quarterback Geno Smith. It also helped that the opponent was the Raiders, arguably the worst team in the league this season.
Still, a win is a win. And the Brown previously had only two. Why not let Shedeur Sanders give it another try on Sunday, when the 49ers come to town?
The Browns picked up a 24-10 win with Shedeur Sanders at quarterback against the Raiders on Sunday and that made it a sure thing that head coach Kevin Stefanski would be asked if Sanders will remain the team’s starter for Week 13.
Dillon Gabriel suffered a concussion against the Ravens in Week 11 and was ruled out for Sunday’s game, which opened the door for Sanders to start and go 11-of-20 for 209 yards, a touchdown and an interception. After the game, Stefanski was asked if Sanders did enough to get another chance to run the offense against the 49ers next Sunday.
“I’m not going to get into that,” Stefanski said. “Obviously, proud of him and proud of this offense and there are a ton of things to learn from, but I’m just going to worry about today.”
Stefanski added that he is “going to take my time and do what’s best for the football team” when it comes to deciding which of the two rookies will get the call next time.
