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Testaverde, defense help Panthers notch first home win

Dec 2, 2007 - 11:07 PM CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Ticker) -- The Carolina Panthers can exhale.

Vinny Testaverde threw two touchdowns and cornerback Richard Marshall returned an interception for a score as the Panthers picked up their first home win of the season, 31-14, over the hapless San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.

DeAngelo Williams carried 17 times for 82 yards for Carolina, which racked up 166 yards on the ground en route to snapping a five-game skid.

The 44-year-old Testaverde missed last week's 31-6 loss here to New Orleans because of back spasms, but his return seemed to give the Panthers' offense some life.

The league's oldest quarterback completed 17-of-26 passes for 153 yards with two touchdowns and a pair of interceptions to help the Panthers notch their first home win since November 19, 2006 - a span of seven games.

"That is not one of those streaks that you are excited about," Carolina coach John Fox said. "We finally got that monkey off our back. Sometimes we can press too hard. I'm real happy for our fans because they have been real patient. This has been a long time coming for them, too."

Testaverde put the game out of reach with a 1-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jeff King with 10:26 to play after the 49ers nearly rallied from a 17-point second half deficit.

"We were able to mix the pass and the rush," Testaverde said. "It's always good when you have a balance. Anytime you have early success, it gives you confidence. It's good to win period. But when you have a dry spell like we've had, it's good to get that monkey off our backs.

"It hasn't fixed everything, but it certainly makes you feel better."

While the Carolina offense showed signs of life, the defense benefited from playing the worst offense in the league.

Trent Dilfer was just 14-of-29 for 171 yards with two touchdowns. He tied a career-high with four interceptions for the 49ers, who had just 195 total yards of offense.

Carolina, which sacked Dilfer seven times, turned three San Francisco (3-9) turnovers into 17 points in the first half. It could have been more, but Testaverde was picked off by Nate Clements at the 2-yard line to end the half.

"When your offense puts points on the board and your defense is playing well, that's when you can tee off on it," said defensive end Mike Rucker, who had 1 1/2 sacks. "We were able to get pressure back there in his face. Hopefully we can keep this going into next week and the next. It has been tough."

In all, the 49ers had five turnovers and could not follow up on last week's 37-31 overtime win over Arizona.

"It's hard to win a football game when you turn the ball over five times," San Francisco coach Mike Nolan said. "We had our chances and did not do what was necessary. This was a very difficult loss ... because we did make a big step last week. I thought we were making a big one today when we came back (to make it) 17-14."

With the Panthers leading, 3-0, in the second quarter, Testaverde hit rookie tight end Dante Rosario for a 3-yard touchdown that snapped Carolina's 12-quarter touchdown drought here.

The 49ers got a good kick return from Maurice Hicks to the 46-yard line and drove to Carolina's 33. However, Marshall picked off Dilfer and returned it 67 yards down the left sideline for a 17-0 lead with 6:32 remaining in the second.

San Francisco tried to rally as Michael M. Lewis intercepted a pass at the Carolina 31. The turnover helped set up a 20-yard touchdown pass from Dilfer to Arnaz Battle, which cut the lead to 17-7 with 11:19 left in the third.

Less than two minutes later, Clements' 41-yard punt return helped the 49ers pull closer. It took just four plays for Dilfer to hit Delanie Walker for a 21-yard score that made it 17-14 with 8:29 left.

But San Francisco continued to be plagued by sloppy play as Michael Lewis muffed at punt at his own 11-yard line. Four plays later, DeShaun Foster scored from 1-yard out to make the score 24-14 with 4:52 remaining in the third.

Testaverde then led a 14-play, 83-yard drive which was capped by his touchdown to King.

"We made mistakes and we didn't capitalize on the plays the defense made," said 49ers tailback Frank Gore, who ran for 58 yards on 12 carries. "Coming down to Carolina, I thought we had a good chance to win. We had bad breaks and many times things haven't gone our way this year. That's a disappointment.

"We just have to capitalize on every opportunity we get and I think we'll have a good chance."