The San Francisco 49ers are getting ready to take on the Carolina Panthers on Monday Night Football this week, looking to stack consecutive wins for the first time since Week 3.
San Francisco is coming off a 41-22 win over the Arizona Cardinals in a game that they dominated from the start, while the Panthers beat the Atlanta Falcons 30-27 in overtime on the road last weekend, thanks to 448 passing yards from quarterback Bryce Young.
The Panthers have had some ups and downs this year, starting the season 1-3 before rattling off three consecutive victories, including a 30-27 win over the Dallas Cowboys. After that, they got blown out by the Buffalo Bills 40-9, but upset the Green Bay Packers 16-13. A loss to the New Orleans Saints and a second win over the Falcons now has Carolina at 6-5.
Young starred in the win over Atlanta this past weekend with the 448 yards and three touchdowns, but it was his rookie wide receiver that really caught eyes. First-round pick Tetairoa McMillan had eight catches for 130 yards and two touchdowns in a memorable day for the rookie.
The 49ers will have their hands full trying to guard him, and head coach Kyle Shanahan is well aware of that, giving some big praise to the rookie wideout.
“I think he’s a stud,” Shanahan said of McMillan. “He’s going to be one of the best receivers in this League sooner than later. He’s got all the skill sets to do it, and I think he’s just getting started.”
When asked if the McMillan caught the 49ers eye during the draft, Shanahan acknowledged: ‘big time.’
McMillan could’ve been a possibility for the 49ers, but Shanahan expected him to go before their pick at No. 11, which ended up being the case. He’s caught 54 passes for 748 yards and four touchdowns in his rookie season so far, solidifying himself as the No. 1 option in Carolina.
Instead, San Francisco went with Mykel Williams at No. 11 to get a building block for the defensive line for the future. Williams had seen some growth as a rookie before a season-ending injury against the New York Giants. He’ll finish his rookie season with 20 tackles and a sack.
When it comes to guarding McMillan this week, it’ll be interesting to see how the Panthers look to get him open. He’ll face either Deommodore Lenoir or Renardo Green on the outside, and it’ll be safe to assume that Young will be looking McMillan’s way on Monday. But, teams have also targeted the nickel spot against the 49ers, so McMillan could see some opportunities there as well as he did last weekend when he had a monster day.
McMillan against the 49ers corners could be one of the most important matchups to watch this week, and it seems Shanahan knows the challenge he’s going to face on the opposite sidelines.
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