Monday Night Football | Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, CA | Kickoff: 8:15 PM ET | Broadcast: ESPN | Attendance: 71,337
Carolina’s defense intercepted Brock Purdy three times in the first half and converted all of them into a single 25-yard field goal. Christian McCaffrey, playing against the Panthers for the first time since the October 2022 trade, finished with 142 scrimmage yards and a touchdown on 31 touches as San Francisco won 20–9 — a result that left the Panthers at 6–6 and a game behind Tampa Bay in the NFC South.
Tetairoa McMillan 29-yd pass from Bryce Young (2-pt conversion failed) — 8 plays, 68 yds, 3:53
4th
9:21
SF
9–20
Matt Gay 29-yd FG — 10 plays, 59 yds, 6:28
Passing
Player
Team
CMP/ATT
YDS
YPA
TD
INT
SACKS
QBR
RTG
Brock Purdy
SF
23/32
193
6.0
1
3
0–0
49.5
58.5
Bryce Young
CAR
18/29
169
5.8
1
2
1–8
14.2
60.8
Purdy’s three interceptions all came in the first half — two to cornerback Jaycee Horn, one to cornerback Mike Jackson — making him the first player in the 2025 NFL season to throw three picks in a single half. Young, off a franchise-record 448-yard game at Atlanta the week prior, was held to 169 yards and threw a first-and-goal interception from the San Francisco 1-yard line that erased Carolina’s best first-half scoring chance.
Rushing
Player
Team
CAR
YDS
AVG
TD
LG
Christian McCaffrey
SF
24
89
3.7
1
17
Brian Robinson Jr.
SF
7
40
5.7
0
12
Brock Purdy
SF
6
16
2.7
0
9
Ricky Pearsall
SF
1
2
2.0
0
2
SF Total
38
147
3.9
1
17
Rico Dowdle
CAR
6
38
6.3
0
17
Chuba Hubbard
CAR
3
16
5.3
0
10
Bryce Young
CAR
4
15
3.8
0
7
CAR Total
13
69
5.3
0
17
McCaffrey’s 12-yard touchdown run in the third quarter — his seventh rushing TD in seven consecutive games — came on a 13-play, 80-yard drive and was his 10th 100-plus scrimmage yard performance of the 2025 season, two shy of the franchise record he set in 2023. San Francisco opened the game by handing McCaffrey the ball on each of the first five plays of a 15-play opening drive.
Receiving
Player
Team
REC
YDS
AVG
TD
LG
TGT
George Kittle
SF
6
78
13.0
0
25
10
Christian McCaffrey
SF
7
53
7.6
0
19
7
Jauan Jennings
SF
5
41
8.2
1
12
7
Demarcus Robinson
SF
1
8
8.0
0
8
1
Ricky Pearsall
SF
2
6
3.0
0
6
4
Brian Robinson Jr.
SF
1
4
4.0
0
4
2
Luke Farrell
SF
1
3
3.0
0
3
1
SF Total
23
193
8.4
1
25
32
Rico Dowdle
CAR
4
36
9.0
0
12
4
Tetairoa McMillan
CAR
2
35
17.5
1
29
7
Jalen Coker
CAR
3
32
10.7
0
18
4
Chuba Hubbard
CAR
4
27
6.8
0
14
4
Xavier Legette
CAR
3
22
7.3
0
14
5
Jimmy Horn Jr.
CAR
1
11
11.0
0
11
1
Ja’Tavion Sanders
CAR
1
6
6.0
0
6
1
Mitchell Evans
CAR
0
0
—
0
0
1
CAR Total
18
169
9.4
1
29
27
McMillan’s 29-yard touchdown reception cut Carolina’s deficit to 17–9 late in the third quarter. A penalty on the two-point conversion pushed the attempt back to the 1-yard line; Young’s pass to Jalen Coker fell incomplete.
Defense — San Francisco 49ers
Player
TOT
SOLO
SACKS
TFL
PD
QB HTS
Malik Mustapha
7
7
0
1
0
0
Upton Stout
6
2
0
0
1
0
Ji’Ayir Brown
5
4
0
0
2
0
Jordan Elliott
3
2
0
0
0
0
Deommodore Lenoir
3
2
0
0
0
0
Curtis Robinson
3
1
0
0
0
0
Jason Pinnock
2
2
0
0
0
0
Nick Martin
2
2
0
0
0
0
Clelin Ferrell
1
1
1
1
0
1
Kyle Juszczyk
1
1
0
0
0
0
Colton McKivitz
1
1
0
0
0
0
Bryce Huff
1
1
0
0
0
2
Luke Farrell
1
1
0
0
0
0
Dee Winters
1
1
0
0
0
0
Sam Okuayinonu
1
1
0
0
0
0
Siran Neal
1
0
0
0
0
0
Keion White
1
0
0
0
0
0
Kalia Davis
1
0
0
0
0
0
Alfred Collins
1
0
0
0
0
0
C.J. West
1
0
0
0
0
0
Marques Sigle
1
0
0
0
0
0
Renardo Green
0
0
0
0
1
0
Team Total
44
29
1
2
4
3
Defense — Carolina Panthers
Player
TOT
SOLO
SACKS
TFL
PD
QB HTS
Krys Barnes
10
3
0
0
0
0
Tre’Von Moehrig
8
4
0
1
0
0
Nick Scott
8
1
0
0
0
0
A’Shawn Robinson
7
1
0
0
0
1
Tershawn Wharton
6
2
0
0
0
0
Bam Martin-Scott
6
1
0
1
0
0
D.J. Wonnum
5
1
0
0
0
0
Lathan Ransom
5
1
0
0
0
0
Claudin Cherelus
4
3
0
0
0
0
Chau Smith-Wade
4
3
0
1
0
0
Mike Jackson
4
2
0
0
1
0
Trevis Gipson
3
2
0
0
0
0
LaBryan Ray
3
2
0
0
0
0
Princely Umanmielen
3
2
0
0
0
0
Derrick Brown
3
0
0
0
1
0
Corey Thornton
2
1
0
0
0
0
Nic Scourton
2
1
0
0
0
0
Bobby Brown III
2
0
0
0
0
0
Demani Richardson
1
1
0
0
0
0
Tetairoa McMillan
1
1
0
0
0
0
Brycen Tremayne
1
0
0
0
0
0
Jaycee Horn
1
0
0
0
2
0
Thomas Incoom
1
0
0
0
0
0
Team Total
90
32
0
3
4
1
Interceptions
Player
Team
INT
YDS
TD
Jaycee Horn
CAR
2
36
0
Mike Jackson
CAR
1
0
0
Ji’Ayir Brown
SF
2
4
0
Horn’s two picks of Purdy in the first half gave Carolina the ball inside San Francisco territory on both occasions. Brown’s two interceptions of Young — the first from the San Francisco 1-yard line in the second quarter, the second in the fourth quarter with the Panthers trailing 20–9 — ended Carolina’s two most viable scoring drives of the game.
Fumbles
Player
Team
FUM
LOST
REC
Christian McCaffrey
SF
1
0
0
Colton McKivitz
SF
0
0
1
Trevor Etienne
CAR
1
0
1
Special Teams
Kicking
Player
Team
FG
PCT
LONG
XP
PTS
Matt Gay
SF
2/2
100%
47 yds
2/2
8
Ryan Fitzgerald
CAR
1/2
50%
25 yds
0/0
3
Gay’s 47-yarder just before halftime held up as San Francisco’s second score of the night. Fitzgerald converted from 25 yards in the second quarter — Carolina’s only return off three Purdy turnovers. His 57-yard attempt in the fourth quarter, which would have required a subsequent touchdown and two-point conversion to tie, missed badly.
Punting
Player
Team
NO
YDS
AVG
TB
IN 20
LG
Sam Martin
CAR
4
201
50.3
1
2
55
Thomas Morstead
SF
1
40
40.0
0
0
40
Kick Returns
Player
Team
NO
YDS
AVG
LG
TD
Skyy Moore
SF
3
80
26.7
43
0
Trevor Etienne
CAR
3
74
24.7
26
0
Punt Returns
Player
Team
NO
YDS
AVG
LG
TD
Trevor Etienne
CAR
1
6
6.0
6
0
San Francisco
SF
0
—
—
—
—
Team Stats
Stat
Carolina
San Francisco
Total Yards
230
340
Passing Yards
161
193
Rushing Yards
69
147
Total Plays
43
70
Yards per Play
5.3
4.9
1st Downs
12
23
— Passing
9
11
— Rushing
3
12
— Penalties
0
0
3rd Down Efficiency
1/7 (14%)
7/13 (54%)
4th Down Efficiency
0/0
2/2 (100%)
Red Zone (Made–Att)
0/2
2/3
Penalties
4 for 30 yds
2 for 6 yds
Turnovers
2
3
— Fumbles Lost
0
0
— Interceptions
2
3
Sacks–Yards Lost
1–8
0–0
Defensive / ST TDs
0
0
Time of Possession
22:18
37:42
Injuries
Carolina Panthers: CB Jaycee Horn (concussion, first half — did not return), LB Claudin Cherelus (concussion, first half — did not return), G Chandler Zavala (calf, second half — did not return), CB Corey Thornton (ankle, second half — did not return).
San Francisco 49ers: DE Sam Okuayinonu (ankle, second half — did not return).
Game Notes
Late in the fourth quarter, Panthers safety Tre’Von Moehrig struck 49ers wide receiver Jauan Jennings in the groin following a run play. Jennings responded with a punch to Moehrig’s helmet after the game. No ejections were issued.
Officials
Referee: Alex Kemp
Umpire: Brandon Ellison
Down Judge: Mike Carr
Line Judge: Rusty Baynes
Field Judge: Sean Petty
Side Judge: Lo van Pham
Back Judge: Scott Helverson
San Francisco outgained Carolina 340–230, converted 7 of 13 third downs against Carolina’s 1 of 7, and held the ball for over 15 minutes longer. The Panthers generated three turnovers on defense, scored three points off them, and went 0-for-2 in the red zone. McCaffrey carried 31 touches for 142 scrimmage yards against the organization that traded him and recorded his 10th 100-yard performance of a 2025 NFL season he spent proving the trade wrong. Carolina entered the night tied with Tampa Bay for the NFC South lead and left Levi’s Stadium a game back.
Elizabeth J. Luna founded Sports Player Stats in Los Angeles in April 2026, after close to two decades covering sport professionally across Europe and the United States. She grew up in Sweden, where football was less a hobby than a household religion, and carried that obsession west when she relocated to Los Angeles in her twenties. The NFL took hold quickly. So did the NBA. Eventually she was covering both alongside FIFA, cricket, MLB, hockey, and the WNBA, which tells you something about the kind of sports journalist she is. Her work has always started with match data and player statistics, not because numbers are the whole story, but because in her experience they are usually the most honest part of it. She launched Sports Player Stats because she wanted a publication that took every sport seriously on its own terms, one where a cricket innings and an NBA box score received the same standard of analysis. That standard is what she shows up to defend every day.
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