CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Deebo Samuel lined up in the left slot, left his defender in the dust, cut across the end zone, and, voila, snagged Jimmy Garoppolo’s 4-yard pass for a third-and-goal touchdown.
This was the offensive answer the 49ers desperately needed Sunday, for multiple reasons, en route to a 37-15 victory.
Before Samuel scored, the 49ers led just 17-9, and that was cause for familiar concerns.
You see, the Panthers had just pulled within one score thanks to Christian McCaffrey 19-yard, fourth-down run. That was an unpleasant reminder to the 49ers that they’d blown second-half leads in this season’s previous two road games at Chicago and Denver, not to mention last season’s NFC Championship Game defeat at the Los Angeles Rams.
Adding to the tension was this disheartening news: defensive end Nick Bosa would not play in the second half because of a groin injury. That alone could dampen the win, but other injury exits were made by kicker Robbie Gould (knee), defensive back Jimmie Ward (hand) and, with 4:12 remaining, cornerback Emmanuel Moseley (knee).
So, the 49ers needed Samuel, their All-Pro catalyst, to spark an offense that had produced only one touchdown in 20 second-half drives prior to Sunday.
The Deebo Drive ensued.
Having grown up 80 miles east in Inman, S.C., Samuel came alive to lead the 49ers’ drive toward the north end zone. It started with his first catch of the day (16 yards), followed by a 3-yard run, and kept alive by a pass-interference penalty he drew against a Carolina cornerback on fourth-and-3. Jauan Jennings’ 32-yard, catch-and-run got the 49ers to the 3-yard line.
On third-and-goal from the 4, Samuel scored his second touchdown in as many games. It was not as theatrical as his 57-yarder in last Monday night’s win over the Rams. It was critical, though, to stop Sunday’s bleeding.
The 49ers (3-2) now head into the West Virginia mountains to practice at The Greenbrier Resort for a third straight season. Then, next Sunday, they’ll visit another NFC South team, the Atlanta Falcons (2-3).
Bosa might not be the only 49er missing from that next outing. Gould sustained a left-knee injury making a midfield tackle on the kickoff after Samuel’s touchdown, and Ward’s season debut lasted only one play before he left with a hand injury. Moseley, who had a first-half interception return for his first career touchdown, exited with an apparent knee injury while defending a deep pass with about 4 minutes to go.
The 49ers defense already was playing without defensive tackles Arik Armstead (feet) and Javon Kinlaw (knee) — and their offense is without left tackle Trent Williams — but losing Bosa for any amount of time will sting the most.
Still on that 49ers’ defensive front, however, are pass rushers Samson Ebukam, Kemoko Turay and rookie Drake Jackson, whose fourth-down sack ended Baker Mayfield’s night and set up Tevin Coleman’s 5-yard touchdown run in the closing minutes.
The 49ers’ opponents averaged a league-low 11.5 points through four games, and although the Panthers surpassed that mark, they repeatedly had to settle for field-goal attempts. Meanwhile, the 49ers piled up their most touchdowns in a game since last season’s opener at Detroit (which also preceded a Greenbrier layover).
The 49ers’ vaunted defense did crack on its opening series after halftime. That’s when McCaffrey had his fourth-and-1, 19-yard touchdown run. It cut the 49ers’ lead to 17-9, and McCaffrey got stopped on an ensuing two-point conversion try. Bosa was on the sideline, still in full uniform, while that drive unfolded without him.
If Samuel’s touchdown wasn’t the 49ers’ most important, perhaps it was Jeff Wilson Jr.’s 1-yard plunge early in the fourth quarter for a 30-12 margin.
Also getting into the scoring act, for the first time in his five-year career, was cornerback Emmanuel Moseley. He delivered a 41-yard interception return for a touchdown, 55 seconds before halftime. That cued CBS’ broadcast to note that the Panthers had lost 24 in a row when yielding at least 17 points.
Garoppolo directed a touchdown drive on the game’s first series, however. Tevin Coleman’s 9-yard, catch-and-run put the 49ers ahead 7-0 and capped a 75-yard march that was sparked by Wilson’s 41-yard run to the 9; Wilson had his first 100-yard game this season.
Ward, starting as a hybrid linebacker, injured his left hand after cutting into the backfield to try stopping a McCaffrey 9-yard run. Ward, a pregame captain, missed the first four games with a hamstring injury, and although he is eligible to have a second stint on short-term Injured Reserve, the 49ers get only eight such designations in a season.
Kittle, on his 29th birthday, had four catches on the first two drives, but he gave the Panthers a gift by fumbling away the 49ers’ second possession. Panthers kicker Eddie Pineiro missed a field goal on their ensuing possession; he made his next three attempts.
Gould made a 49-yard field goal for a 10-0, second-quarter lead, then had a field goal blocked for the second time this season. He took hard hits to his shoulder making midfield tackles
When Pineiro came on for a 34-yard field goal with 6:51, a chorus of boos filtered out from the sparse Panthers fans who remained in a half-filled stadium that was awash with a slew of 49ers fans in red, road jerseys.
Once the carnage was done, Brock Purdy ended this affair by taking his first NFL snap, in a kneel-down, victory formation.
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