The NFL schedule makers, in their infinite, algorithmic wisdom, have given us a Monday night curiosity.
The 49ers, I get — big brand, big names, big ratings for ESPN.
But the Carolina Panthers? I’m not even sure if noted superfan Steph Curry has watched a full Panthers game this season.
And was this supposed to be a breakthrough campaign for them?
So the NFL’s most forgettable team will be on arguably the sport’s biggest stage. And having watched them in preparation for Monday Night Football, I have some bad news to deliver:
The Panthers are not a good football team.
They aren’t even a bad football team — because bad teams at least have the decency to have an identity. No, the Panthers are something far worse: aggressively mediocre.
They’re the unsalted cracker of the NFL. The waiting room music of the league.
I could go on.
But it’s that pile of nothingness that would make Nietzsche shudder that makes Monday’s game the most dangerous night of the year for Kyle Shanahan.
The Panthers cannot beat the 49ers.
Don’t misconstrue that: The Panthers can win on Monday. They have won six times already this season.
But they cannot go toe-to-toe with the 49ers, both teams playing their best, and win.
And that makes this game the ultimate litmus test for the Niners.
Can San Francisco take care of their business, capitalize on Carolina’s many deficiencies, and stroll to a win?
Or will they run head-first into wall after wall while the Panthers stand there, hands in their pockets, just doing their unremarkable thing?
Don’t pretend like that can’t happen to San Francisco.
The Packers thought they were above losing to the Panthers. They were 11.5-point favorites at home, after all. But then they had two turnovers, missed a field goal, and failed to contain the run, and suddenly, despite outgaining Carolina by more than 100 yards and with Bryce Young only throwing for 102 yards, the Packers lost at home.
The Panthers accept this kind of gift, weekly, with the polite nod of a doorman collecting a tip. They don’t force errors — they simply provide a safe space for them to happen.
And six times this year, an opponent has looked at the Panthers and said, “Here, you take it.”
If San Francisco is what they want to be — a legitimate playoff team and one that can win a game or two, even with all their injuries — then this game should be a procedural formality. A real contender looks at a team like Carolina, identifies the lack of elite firepower and its non-playable-character defense, and squeezes the life out of them. A contender plays clean, boring, victorious football, and they take care of this early.
This should be procedural.
Does that sound like the 2025 49ers?
So yes, this is a trap, and it has a massive, neon-lit sign with an arrow pointing down at it.
If the 49ers lose this game, it won’t be because Young carved them up. It won’t be because the Panthers’ schematic brilliance overwhelmed — this team runs a lot of mirrored concepts on offense like it’s high school ball..
No, if the Niners lose, it will be because the 49ers beat the 49ers.
And for a team that has not earned the benefit of the doubt this season, such a loss would be disqualifying.
For what it’s worth, I do expect the 49ers to win. There are too many universes where San Francisco overwhelms an inferior team.
And here are three predictions for the game:
Ricky Pearsall has a day
» Stop checking the box score and actually turn on the tape.
Ricky Pearsall played well against Arizona — you just couldn’t see it.
I saw the panic this week. It was laughable.
The kid wasn’t just running cardio; he was absolutely cooking professional defensive backs.
He was beating man coverage consistently, snapping off routes, and getting open at will. The ball didn’t find him — that happens in an offense with Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle — but the separation was undeniable.
Shanahan will have seen it on the All-22. Brock Purdy would have seen it. And against the only team in the NFL that’s as bad at pressuring the quarterback as the 49ers, they will have time to get Pearsall the ball this week. I imagine it will be a top priority.
We did this same thing last year, folks. Let’s not forget hard-learned lessons.
The targets are coming. Pearsall’s breakout isn’t a hope; it’s inevitable.
Hands up!
» The 49ers’ pass rush needs to change its psychology this week, and I think they will.
Sacking Bryce Young is great, but sacks have been hard to come by for this patchwork 49ers defensive line.
So why not just throw your hands up instead?
Young is historically small — 5-foot-10 and maybe 190 pounds. He makes Brock Purdy look like Cam Newton and Cam Newton look like Shaq.
And with that diminutive stature, Young has to throw high-arcing loopers just to clear the line of scrimmage. He practically sacks himself half the time with his processing speed.
The directive for the defensive line shouldn’t be “kill,” it should be “reach.”
Alfred Collins should have a big day in this regard. Playing right up the middle, the 6-foot-5 defensive tackle also possesses 34-inch arms. How is Young going to see over that?
If he just stands there and puts his mitts up, he’s getting pass breakups by accident.
Make Young try to throw over a forest, and the turnovers will fall into your lap.
Simple plan
» The Panthers have so many things going against them on defense, but if they have one area of quality, it might be in slowing down interior runs.
So all that gap-scheme stuff the Niners have been running in recent weeks? Please put it on the back burner (you’ll need it later).
No, the Niners need to get back to the basics of the Shanahan offense and run outside zone again and again and again this week.
Carolina runs basic Cover 3. They have no one who can set an edge. Run the ball to the perimeter, turn the corner, and watch the yards pile up. It’s a layup.
Don’t be the Warriors and miss it.
PREDICTION: 49ers 26 – Carolina 18
Niners get up early and mess around for the rest of the game. You’ll be happy to know that Gonzaga will play Alabama in men’s basketball on TNT, while the Rockets take on the Suns on Peacock.