San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan defended wide receiver Jauan Jennings after he was involved in a postgame melee with Carolina Panthers safety Tre’von Moehrig. The scuffle came following the 49ers’ 20–9 win on Monday night, and HC Shanahan kept his cool while addressing the moment.

“The guy took a cheap shot and hit him in the balls and was real proud of Jauan for not losing his mind out there,” Shanahan explained, when asked why Jennings retaliated with an open-handed punch after the final whistle.

Shanahan framed the incident as retaliation for a deliberate, below-the-belt hit, and suggested that context should be taken into account in the league’s response. His point, basically, was that Jennings had stood up for himself and the team without turning the moment into something worse.

“Real proud of Jauan for not losing his mind out there and getting to the sideline,” he further added.

After the final play, Moehrig can be seen making contact with Jennings’s low, then a few seconds later Jennings approaches and slaps Moehrig’s helmet with an open hand. The exchange continued briefly with Jennings trying to restrain himself.

Moehrig downplayed the episode afterward, telling reporters he’d take that one and insinuating there had been prior on-field friction, but he declined to expand on the specifics.

”It ain’t really nothing much to it, it was just that. He wanted to do a little dirty stuff, so it is what it is, man,” the Panthers’ safety added. However, he admits he was hit but did not own the cheap-shot accusation, raising the odds that both players face fines.

WR Jennings opened the game with a 12-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter. Later in the third quarter, he converted a third-down catch, which helped him to finish the night with 41 yards on five catches.

As for HC Shanahan, he is well aware of such heated exchanges, and this one was no different.

”Just intense, competitive conversation between two people at the end of the second quarter, but we’re good,” the Niners head coach told the reporters.

San Francisco’s 20-9 win mattered just as much as what happened off the ball.

Kyle Shanahan’s 49ers win over the Panthers

The 49ers improved to 8-4 while Carolina fell to 6-6. Christian McCaffrey made a triumphant return against his former team. He finished with 142 scrimmage yards on 24 carries and seven catches for 53 yards.

Quarterback play was sloppy on both sides, as Brock Purdy had three interceptions, and Bryce Young went 18 of 29 for 169 yards, one touchdown, and two picks. However, the defense dominated the game, and the 49ers were able to turn it around for themselves and secured a home win.

Moving forward, the 49ers will face the Cleveland Browns in Week 13 in a road game.

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