Despite Week 1 loss to Panthers, 49ers defense a bright spot

Losing by 20 points was a disappointing beginning for the San Francisco 49ers in Week 1 against the Carolina Panthers. But the Niners’ solid defensive effort was a bright spot  for this young rebuilding team.

Sure, with a 20-point loss at home, positives to take away from the San Francisco 49ers’ Sunday loss may be hard to find.

Despite the lopsided final score, defensive coordinator Robert Saleh’s young defense made significant strides toward regaining some of the respect it held some short seasons ago.

With an inept offensive output, the defense tired late, yet still held up fairly well overall. The Panthers gained just 287 yards total, with the two Carolina touchdowns coming on short fields following turnovers by the offense.

San Francisco 49ers

Comparatively the 2016 version of the Niners defense yielded 529 yards to the Carolina Panthers in Week 2 last season.

And although Carolina gained 116 yards on the ground, the defense yielded just 3.1 yards per carry to Panthers tailbacks Jonathan Stewart, Christian McCaffrey and Co.

Panthers quarterback Cam Newton was just 14-of-25 for 171 yards and had a 56-percent completion mark. In fact, on Carolina’s four scoring drives, the Panthers gained just 124 yards, which meant they had only 31 yards average per drive.

Granted, Newton was playing for the first time since offseason shoulder surgery and was plagued with inaccuracy that cost the Panthers a touchdown and a few big gains they would have had if he delivered the ball more accurately.

Had the 49ers been able to muster some type of quarterback pressure, the secondary may have had more opportunities for turnovers on the back end of the defense.

With the amount of draft capital the team has invested over the past few seasons on the defensive front, rookie Solomon Thomas, Arik Armstead and perhaps even Aaron Lynch (who did not play, per a coach’s decision) will need to produce more going forward for this team to reach its potential, defensively.

With safety Jaquiski Tartt struggling with consistency, and fellow safety Jimmie Ward’s (hamstring) status still unknown, perhaps rookie defensive back Lorenzo Jerome can find more playing time this week against the Seattle Seahawks.

All told, with fewer turnovers on the offensive side, better execution (10 penalties for 74 yards) and the ability to pressure and contain Seattle QB Russell Wilson, the 49ers would give themselves a better chance at keeping the game close into the fourth quarter in Seattle on Sunday.

The Niners may need to insert Aaron Lynch at the LEO position, or have Thomas play more snaps. Either way, they need to find a way to test Seattle’s porous offensive line and produce more pressure than they got on Newton.

Next: 3 positive 49ers takeaways from loss to Panthers

With a solid showing against Carolina, the 49ers defense held its own and provided a little hope that last year’s atrocious defensive effort will be a thing of the past going forward.

Here’s hoping the defense continues to build brick by brick, week by week and bring even more physicality to this week’s game against the Seahawks.