The San Francisco 49ers and the Carolina Panthers will meet Sunday in what is expected to be a big game for both teams. The 49ers are coming off an upset of sorts against the Los Angeles Rams and the Panthers are coming off a heartbreaking loss to the Denver Broncos. But all eyes will be focused on his emergence of 49ers RB, Carlos Hyde, and his Fantasy Football output.
Hyde will face one of the stingiest defenses in the Panthers. Last week against the Rams he ran for 88 yards and two touchdowns on 23 carries. But the Rams defense is not the same as the Panthers and neither is their offense. Here is why we should fade Hyde (I have him on my roster as well). The Panthers are one of the best run stoppers in the NFL and while they did give up 148 rushing yards to the Broncos, 56 of those came on two long plays.
The difference that Hyde will face is the Panthers offense. The Rams do not have the weapons that Carolina has at their disposal. The defense was able to shut down Todd Gurley due to the Rams inability to get anything going thru the air. Cam Newton is a much different athlete than Case Keenum and Kelvin Benjamin is more skilled than Tavon Austin.
If the Panthers offense can move the ball and score at will as expected then that changes the 49ers gameplan. Hyde will face the same issue that Adrian Peterson will face against the Packers. If their team falls behind they will be forced to throw the ball, thus resulting in fewer touches out the backfield.
The Panthers will start the game loading the box, with anticipation of stopping Hyde. If Newton can get the Panthers out to an early lead, Chip Kelly will be forced to lean on the arm of Blaine Gabbert against a secondary that put the clamps of Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders. The week 2 matchup is not in favor of Hyde owners. He should be faded at all cost.