49ers Still unable to Solve Vikings on Road

Week 2 - Following a dominant Week 1 Win at home on Monday Night Football over the New York Jets, Kyle Shanahan's (1-0) San Francisco 49ers would hit the road for the first time this season where the (1-0) Minnesota Vikings would play host in their home-opener. Another dominant win for San Francisco was already highly unlikely given the Niners' recent misfortunes on the road against the Vikings where they've lost seven straight entering Sunday, but even more so considering Minnesota's U.S. Bank Stadium has been a house of horrors for the 49ers since its inception in 2016. However, the Niners' struggles in the land of ten thousand lakes actually predates the Vikings' new digs, dating back to 1992 which was Joe Montana's last season as a member of the 49ers. 

Keeping up with their historically poor luck in Minnesota, the 49ers fell into a 10-0 hole in the first half. After both teams opened the game by exchanging punts, the Niners' second drive on offense was stalled and resulted in another punt. However, this time punter Mitch Wishnowsky would have his punt blocked, giving the Vikings stellar field position. Although the San Francisco defense would hold the Minnesota offense to only a field goal, the Vikings would take an early lead they would not relinquish. San Francisco would reach the doorstep of the end zone on their ensuing possession, but were stopped at the 2-yard line after a 4th and goal attempt went awry following an incomplete pass from quarterback Brock Purdy to receiver Jauan Jennings. Matters would only get worse as the 49er defense had the Vikings pinned back near the goal line inside their own 5, but Minnesota QB Sam Darnold would connect on a 97-yard score to All-Pro receiver Justin Jefferson. The touchdown pass would be the longest ever against the 49ers in their storied history, topping a 96-yarder from Tobin Rote to Billy Grimes of the Green Bay Packers back on Dec. 10, 1950. 

Trailing 10-0, the double-digit deficit nearly increased as the Vikings were threatening before an incredible interception by All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner. The takeaway would finally wake up the 49er offense after a pair of big plays by receiver Deebo Samuel and running back Jordan Mason helped setup a 7-yard touchdown grab by tight-end George Kittle. With a last-second field goal as time expired to end the second quarter, the Vikings went into the locker room with a 13-7 halftime lead. Both teams would come out sluggish to open the second half, highlighted by three straight punts before a Brock Purdy interception on a bobbled pass to fullback Kyle Juszczyk. The Vikings would capitalize one play later with a touchdown pass from Darnold to a wide-open Jalen Nailor. The game would continue to get ugly for San Francisco as Purdy fumbled the ball on their very next possession after losing grip of the ball on a pass attempt. Warner would bail his team out for a second time by coming up with a heads-up tackle near the goal-line to force a fumble on Vikings running back Aaron Jones, recovered in the end zone by the 49er defense. 

Brock Purdy and company would cash in on the takeaway yet again, this time by orchestrating their best drive of the day, capped off with a 10-yard touchdown run by Mason who also topped 100-yards rushing on the day. Inching closer but still trailing 20-14, the 49ers were in need of a stop on defense but succumbed to another Vikings field goal. The Niners would get a late field goal of their own to pull within one score but were unable to recover the onside-kick attempt as both time and their luck expired. With the loss, 49ers QB Brock Purdy in now 0-2 in his career against Minnesota, and 14-0 against all other NFC opponents. Improving to 2-0 on the year, Minnesota is off to their best start to a season since 2016, evening the all-time series with San Francisco in head-to-head matchups: 25-wins, 25 losses, and 1 tie. 

Although Minnesota was without receiver Jordan Addison who had his best game against the Niners a season ago during his rookie campaign while hauling in 7 receptions for 123 yards and 2 TDs in a Week 7 Monday Night win, they had no answer for Justin Jefferson who sat out in last season's match-up between the two teams with an injury. Jefferson finished a game-high 133 receiving yards and a touchdown on just 4 catches, fueled by the big 97-yarder. Deebo Samuel finished with 110 yards receiving and led both teams with 8 receptions. Niners quarterback Brock Purdy had a good game statistically with 319 yards passing and a touchdown, but his two turnovers proved to be costly in a close game. Vikings starter and former 49er Sam Darnold also had an impressive performance by throwing for 268 yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception. Despite the loss, 49ers tight-end George Kittle joined Rob Gronkowski and Travis Kelce with the third most yards ever by a tight-end in their first 100 games. 

Noteworthy: Mitch Wishnowsky's first quarter blocked punt was already the third blocked punt on the season, after only 6 blocked punts in the entire NFL last season.

Week 3 Preview: The 49ers will hope to have much better luck on the road in Week 3 when they depart a stadium (Minnesota) they've never won in, for a stadium where they've never lost a regular season meeting -- L.A.'s SoFi Stadium. Coined the nickname "Levi's South" due to the large amount of 49er fans that flood the stadium anytime these two teams meet, Brock Purdy and company will look to get back in the win column in their first division matchup of the season when they take on the rival (0-2) Los Angeles Rams. Expected to be near the top of the division standings along with the 49ers, the slow 0-2 start for the Rams is among some of the biggest surprises thru the first two weeks of the 2024-25 NFL season. However, it doesn't help that the Rams are without two of their biggest playmakers on offense in receivers Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua. Without the superstar tandem to throw to, QB Matthew Stafford will have to make do with his other targets. 

Unfortunately, the 49ers are also banged up and will be without a number of weapons of their own on offense, including running back Christian McCaffrey (Achilles), receiver Deebo Samuel (calf) and tight-end George Kittle (hamstring). Pro Bowl defensive-end Nick Bosa is also nursing an injury (rib) that has kept him limited in practice, but he's expected to be ready in time for gameday. Will the Rams drop to 0-3 on the season, or will both teams walk away from this one with a 1-2 record on the season? 

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49ers Ground Jets in Monday Night Opener

Week 1 - With the start of the 2024-25 NFL regular season in full-swing, football fans were given a steady diet of games all throughout the week including the season-opener on Thursday night between the Kansas City Chiefs & Balitmore Ravens, followed by a Friday matinee in Brazil between the Green Bay Packers & Philadelphia Eagles. The fun continued with a busy slate of matches on Sunday, bookended by the San Francisco 49ers hosting the New York Jets on Monday Night Football. The final match-up of the week would be one of the more intriguing games going in as no two teams are in win-now mode in their respective conferences more than the 49ers and Jets. 

But if there's one thing these two teams have in common aside from their closing championship window, it's their familiarity with heartbreak which both teams felt in two completely different ways just a season ago. On one hand, you have Kyle Shanahan's 49ers who have gotten to the Conference Championship in 4 of the last 5 seasons including 2 Super Bowl appearances but have come up short despite having arguably the best overall roster in the entire NFL. On the other hand, you have the Jets who also have a talented roster of their own on both sides of the football but have had a glaring weakness in the past at the quarterback position. Expectations were sky-high a season ago for the Jets under head coach Robert Saleh, former 49ers defensive-coordinator who served four years on Shanahan's staff, after the acquisition of one of the greatest QB's of all-time in Aaron Rodgers. Hoping the 4-time league MVP would be the answer to those problems after coming over from the Green Bay Packers via trade during the offseason, things went south rather quickly when Rodgers was injured just four plays into his season and ruled out for the year with a torn Achilles in the Monday Night-opener. Coincidentally, the Jets would find themselves playing on Monday Night to open the season for a second consecutive season, this time hoping to avoid injury to arguably their most important player. 

Taking the field without their big offseason acquisition Haasan Reddick whom quarterback Brock Purdy and the 49ers know quite well dating back to the 2023 NFC Championship game in Philadelphia against the Eagles which saw Reddick make a play that injured the Niners QB and put an end to their Super Bowl hopes, the Jets would have little to no answer for San Francisco's offense once the game started. With Reddick missing all of training camp and even demanding a trade after failing to receive a new long-term contract extension, similar to the incident that San Francisco's front-office endured with receiver Brandon Aiyuk, Reddick's presence was certainly missed in the trenches by the Jets defense, as demonstrated by a streak of eight consecutive scoring-drives which ignited the Niners to an easy win in the opener. 

Missing a key player of their own, the 49ers would announce just an hour before kickoff that 2023 AP Offensive Player of the Year and starting running back Christian McCaffrey would be scratched from Monday night's game with a lingering calf injury suffered in training camp. Having led the league in scrimmage yards and touchdowns since joining San Francisco in Week 7 of the 2022 season, CMC would leave some big shoes to fill while missing only his second game in a 49ers uniform. However, filling those shoes would not be a problem for backup running back Jordan Mason who would be called upon to make his first career start. After later revealing that it wasn't until Friday night that head coach Kyle Shanahan had informed Mason that he could get the nod at running back if McCaffrey's calf didn't show any signs of improvement before kickoff, the 49ers appear to have channeled a bit of gamesmanship by possibly withholding the severity of McCaffrey's injury. The CMC news quickly spread like wildfire and took the betting landscape by storm as sportsbooks across the country either tinkered with their spreads moments before kickoff or wiped the game off their boards completely. Nevertheless, McCaffrey's absence would be a footnote by games end. 

With both teams exchanging three and out punts on their initial drives, the 49ers struck first after Rodgers' first Jets completion ended in a turnover following a heads up play by Niners All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner who forced a fumble on New York running back Breece Hall. San Francisco would turn Hall's fumble, just the second lost fumble of his career, into a Jake Moody field goal to give them an early 3-0 lead. The lead would not last long, however, as Rodgers and company embarked on their longest drive of the night with a 14-play, 70-yard drive that spanned over 7-minutes and ended in redemption for Breece Hall who rushed into the end zone with a 3-yard touchdown to put the Jets ahead. Adding a second Jake Moody field goal on their ensuing drive, the 49ers would make it a 7-6 ballgame before taking a 13-7 lead midway through the second quarter and never looking back. The Niners' first offensive touchdown of the new year would come from Deebo Samuel who also helped fill in for running back Christian McCaffrey, with a 2-yard rushing touchdown. By this time, the 49ers were off and running on what would be eight straight scoring-drives. 

Leading 16-7 at the half, Jordan Mason added the only other 49ers touchdown thanks to a 5-yard score up the middle to open the second half. The rest of the game in terms of scoring for San Francisco would turn into the Jake Moody show as the second-year 49ers kicker would add four more field goals on the night to give him a total of 6-for-6 on his way to being named NFC Special-teams Player of the Week in Week 1. The 49er defense did a good job stymying Rodgers, especially on the Jets' first possession of the second half when he was intercepted on a deflected pass intended for receiver Garrett Wilson. Niners cornerback Deommodore Lenoir broke up the pass, allowing for an easy tip-drill interception by teammate Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles. One of the few mishaps on the night by the 49er defense came on New York's following possession when Rodgers took advantage of a free-play on an off-sides penalty by the newest member of the Niners Leonard Floyd, and chucked a 36-yard pass to receiver Allen Lazard for his lone touchdown pass of the night. After his NFL-leading 18th career free-play touchdown pass, Rodgers would sit out for most of the fourth quarter with the game out of reach after his final drive ended in a turnover on downs.

The Jets would add a garbage time touchdown with backup quarterback Tyrod Taylor under center, who connected on a 2-yard pass with Lazard for his second touchdown reception on the night, before falling by a final score of 32-19, the first time ever a game ended with that score and handing the Jets their 13th loss in their last 14 games played in primetime. Lazard would lead all receivers with 6 receptions for 89 yards receiving and 2 touchdowns. In his first game back since tearing his Achilles in the season-opener a year ago, Rodgers finished the contest with career-lows in an opener in both completions and pass attempts, tossing for 167 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception on 13 of 21 passes. His counterpart Brock Purdy would finish with a quietly productive night, throwing for 231 yards passing on 19 of 29 attempts, but helped his team play a turnover-free game on offense. But the star of the night for either team would be backup running back Jordan Mason who had himself a career night by logging the fourth best game in 49ers opening-game history. 

Mason's 147 rushing yards were the 4th-most rush yards in a season-opener in 49ers franchise history, behind only Garrison Hearst's 187 yards in 1998 which also came at the hands of the Jets, Carlos Hyde's 168 yard performance in 2015 against Minnesota, and Christian McCaffrey who rushed for 152 yards just a season ago in Pittsburgh. Mason's 147 yards were also the most rushing yards in a season-opener by an undrafted player since Arian Foster's 231 rush yards in 2010 with the Houston Texans. By halftime, Mason had amassed 74 first half rushing yards which were the most total yards of his career in a full game. But perhaps the biggest stat of all is the 28 rushing attempts by Mason, the most in his football career since his 2016 Gallatin High School season in Tennessee, as well as the most carries of any 49ers player in a game under coach Shanahan. Prior to Monday night, the most touches Mason had in an NFL game was 11.  

With their 32-19 win, San Francisco won consecutive openers for the first time since 2011-16 and their first time in the Shanahan era. It was a night filled with firsts as they faced Jets head coach Robert Saleh for the first time since he left San Francisco's defensive coordinator position to coach the Jets back in 2021. It would also mark the first game with newly hired defensive coordinator Nick Sorenson, marking the team's fourth defensive coordinator in five years. When San Francisco went on their scoring spree of eight straight scoring possessions (6 field goals, 2 touchdowns), it was their longest streak in 45 years. Monday's game would not only be the first win on Monday Night Football in three career tries for Niners QB Brock Purdy, it would also be the first game for him as a starter without Christian McCaffrey in the backfield. And finally, Monday night's game was the first game without allowing a pressure since Week 3 of the 2022 season for 49ers left-tackle Trent Williams who had missed all of his team's training camp while holding out in a contract dispute. 

Noteworthy: The 49ers are the only NFL team in the Super Bowl era to get a 200-yard passing game (Purdy), a 125-yard rushing game (Mason), a 50-yard receiving game (Jennings) and an interception (Flannigan-Fowles) from 4 players who were drafted 200th or later or weren't drafted at all. 

Week 2 Preview: Hitting the road for the first time this season, the 49ers will make the trip to the land of ten thousand lakes where they haven't won on the road since 1992 when they take on the (1-0) Minnesota Vikings. Facing off against former 49ers quarterback Sam Darnold who spent last season as the backup in San Francisco and started in the regular season-finale, the 49er defense will try to keep Darnold from having the same amount of success as he had in Week 1. Coming off a 28-6 drubbing of the New York Giants on the road, Darnold tossed for 208 yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception in the win. Darnold was brought in to provide a veteran presence and potentially even compete with Vikings first round draft pick J.J. McCarthy who was selected 10th overall out of Michigan, before the former Wolverine was injured in Minnesota's first preseason game. Requiring surgery to repair a torn meniscus, the injury would put McCarthy on the shelf for his entire rookie campaign, allowing the starting job to fall right into Darnold's lap. 

Early reports have 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey listed as questionable while still nursing his calf injury, but he is expected to practice ahead of Sunday's game according to coach Shanahan. If he is unable to go, we could be in store for another heavy workload from Jordan Mason. 49ers safety Talanoa Hufanga could also make his return in Week 2 after suffering a season-ending knee injury in Week 11 last year that required surgery. The return of Hufanga would be a welcomed one for a 49ers secondary that figures to have their hands full with the very dangerous Justin Jefferson on the opposite side of the ball. San Francisco fell to Minnesota on Monday Night Football during Week 7 a season ago, losing 22-17 behind a Kirk Cousins-led Vikings team.  

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49ers Upended by Vikes in Monday Night Upset

Week 7 - The lingering taste of defeat for the first time this season would last an extra day longer for the (5-1) San Francisco 49ers who after suffering a loss against the Browns in Cleveland, had to wait until Monday Night Football to clear their pallet in hopes of redeeming themselves as they paid a visit to Minnesota to face the (2-4) Vikings. While the 49ers offense can be described as a cocktail made up of all of the finest top-shelf ingredients when healthy, receiver Deebo Samuel could be thought of as the straw that stirs the drink. That straw would be missing as Kyle Shanahan's offense would be without Samuel who is currently sidelined for at least three weeks with a hairline fracture in his shoulder. Appearing lost at times on offense in last week's loss to the Browns after Samuel left the game following the team's opening-drive, the 49ers went on to put up their fewest amount of total yards under coach Shanahan with just 215. The 49er offense would struggle again under the bright lights of Monday Night Football without one of their biggest playmakers. Seeking their first win in Minnesota since 1992, San Francisco's dominant defense was anything but on Monday night. 

Things looked promising to start the game for the Niners before enduring a series of mistakes that would prove to be costly. Vikings running back Alexander Mattison ripped off a 19-yard carry on Minnesota's first play from scrimmage for his longest rush of the season. But two plays later, the 49ers would have the opposition right where they wanted them as cornerback Charvarius Ward came up with an interception after winning a fight for the ball from Vikings rookie receiver Jordan Addison. 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy would come out guns blazing for the San Francisco offense, distributing the ball to a variety of targets by tossing completions of 10, 11 and 9 yards to George Kittle, Brandon Aiyuk and Jauan Jennings, respectively, before the struggles ensued. Niners running back Christian McCaffrey who was questionable to appear in Monday's game not only got the start, but scored two touchdowns. Before finding the end zone later on, McCaffrey would cough up a fumble that cost his team valuable points inside the red zone. Capitalizing on the turnover, the Vikings would march 89-yards down the field to score the game's first points with a touchdown pass from Kirk Cousins. 

With Cousins the subject of trade rumors, the Vikings signal-caller would increase his stock drastically despite entering the game with an all-time record of 2-10 on Monday Night Football. In spite of his poor numbers in primetime throughout his career, Cousins would register one of his best games yet considering his opponent. Even without his best target in wideout Justin Jefferson who is on Injured Reserve due to a hamstring injury, Cousins shined against one of his biggest fans and former offensive coordinators in 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan as the two spent two seasons in Washington together during their time with the Redskins. Sparking his stellar performance was the early touchdown to Addison who would go on to have a career night of his own. The touchdown would mark the first 1st quarter touchdown of the season by the Minnesota offense as well as the first 1st quarter touchdown surrendered by the 49er defense all season. San Francisco would find themselves in rare territory, marking the first time this season that the opposition scored first in a game against them. 

Looking to answer, the 49er offense got within field goal range on their ensuing possession, but rookie kicker Jake Moody who missed two field goals in last week's loss including a potential game-winner in the final seconds, missed another field goal in the first quarter from 40-yards out. With Minnesota adding a field goal of their own one possession later to take a 10-0 lead, San Francisco appeared to be headed into the locker room at the half with some momentum following a 3-yard rushing touchdown from McCaffrey with just over a minute remaining before halftime. Instead, Cousins and the Vikings offense dealt a blow to any sort of momentum shift in favor of the 49ers as the Minnesota QB connected on another touchdown to the aforementioned Addison. Redeeming himself from having the ball pried away from his hands on the Vikings' first possession, Addison was able to fight off Ward and outwrestle him for the ball before springing loose for the 60-yard score with just seconds to spare before the half. 

Instead of receiving the ball at the half and trailing by only a field goal, Brock Purdy and the 49er offense suddenly found themselves in a 9-point hole that would only get worse before it got better. After opening the second half with a punt on offense by the 49ers, the Vikings would add another field goal to increase their lead to 19-7, San Francisco's largest deficit of the season. Making quick work of their next possession, however, Purdy and company needed only three plays from scrimmage to strike back with McCaffrey finding the end zone for his second time of the night. After a rushing touchdown earlier in the first half, McCaffrey added a 35-yard receiving touchdown to make it a one-score game. It would also be McCaffrey's 16th consecutive game with a scrimmage touchdown (including playoffs), setting a new NFL record. With the Vikings adding another field goal to their lead before the end of the third quarter, the 49ers entered the fourth trailing, 22-14. In need of all the points they could get, San Francisco added a field goal from Moody who redeemed himself a bit with a booming 55-yarder to inch his team closer. 

In desperate need of a stop on defense, San Francisco forced the first Vikings punt of the game in the fourth quarter. A week after giving his team a chance to kick a walk-off field goal before things went south, Purdy was given another chance pull off a comeback victory in the fourth quarter. Things were looking up as the Niners made their way to midfield, but that's as far as they would get on the drive as an errant pass sailed on Juaun Jennings for an interception. After a missed field goal attempt by Vikings kicker Greg Joseph kept it a 22-17 lead, Purdy would get one final chance with 1:11 remaining in regulation. After making it into enemy territory with a pair of strikes to receiver Ray-Ray McCloud, Purdy overthrew a ball to McCloud that was also intercepted, sealing the upset win for Minnesota and giving Purdy his first career multi-interception game. While the 49er offense was far from great, the loss was attributed to the San Francisco defense's inability to get off the field on third downs as they were carved alive by Cousins virtually all night long on third down and were unsuccessful in getting to the quarterback, failing to log a single sack. 

Cousins completed 35 of 45 passes and threw for 378 yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception in the win. Meanwhile, his counterpart Brock Purdy threw for 272 yards, 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions, completing 21 of 30 pass attempts. Vikings rookie wide receiver Jordan Addison logged a career-high 123 yards receiving and 2 touchdowns to lead all players. 

Week 8 Preview: Suddenly the bye week can't some soon enough for the (5-2) 49ers who appear to be limping their way to finish line. Having lost two straight after a 5-0 start to the season, Brock Purdy and company will look to get back in the win column as they return home to face Joe Burrow and the (3-3) Cincinnati Bengals. Coming off a bye of their own, the Bengals who have won two straight after a disappointing 1-3 start, will look to add to San Francisco's misery as they've had a full week to prepare for them. With a lingering calf injury to blame for Burrow's slow start, the former Heisman Trophy winner has looked a little better as the season's progressed, but he's still been a far cry from the Burrow we've grown accustomed to seeing playing at a Pro Bowl level. The San Francisco defense will look to get back on track with a bounce back performance in front of the Faithful at Levi's Stadium. As for the offense, they might be without Brock Purdy who's been in the league's concussion protocol that has limited his practice time all week. If he doesn't progress, expect to see backup Sam Darnold under center for the first time as the 49ers starter. 

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49ers Win 3rd straight with Victory over Vikes

Week 12 - On the heels of their first winning streak since opening the season 2-0, the San Francisco 49ers would play host to a Minnesota Vikings team coming off a statement win at home against the rival Green Bay Packers. In a battle between two teams with playoff aspirations and identical 5-5 records, the team that prevailed on Sunday would have one leg up on the other in the fight for the NFC's second Wild Card spot. All things considered, both teams knew that a win wouldn't come easy. With both quarterbacks having played their best ball of the season over the last few weeks entering Sunday, neither QB would steal the show at Levi's Stadium as we saw the good and the ugly from both Kirk Cousins and Jimmy Garoppolo. For San Francisco's Jimmy G, the ugly came rather early.

After the 49ers defense forced a three and out on Minnesota's opening-drive, Kyle Shanahan's offense appeared to have something brewing as they made it to midfield following a big reception in traffic by Jauan Jennings. But another risky pass in traffic just several plays later would prove costly for Garoppolo as his pass was intercepted. Taking advantage of the early turnover, Cousins and company would punch their ticket into the end zone with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Adam Thielen on 4th and goal. It wouldn't be long before the game turned into the Deebo Samuel show on their ensuing possession as San Francisco turned to their biggest playmaker on offense. After a big play by receiver Brandon Aiyuk who turned in a 37-yard gain, Samuel helped the 49ers answer with a 20-yard touchdown run to tie the game up at 7-all. With the touchdown, Deebo Samuel would become just the third receiver in NFL history to score a rushing touchdown in three consecutive games and the first ever to accomplish the feat in the same season since the start of the Super Bowl era. Though his day would be far from over. 

After both teams exchanged punts, the Vikings found the end zone again with Thielen at the forefront. Sneaking past the defense once again, Thielen was left all alone for the 20-yard touchdown, his second of the half, marking the first time in his career with two touchdowns in the first half. Looking to end the first half on a high-note, the 49ers would put together another long Kyle Shanahan patented drive on offense, marching 87-yards on 19-plays and eating up 8-minutes and 20-seconds in the process. The end result being a dart from Garoppolo to Jennings for a 3-yard touchdown to tie the game at 14. With only 18-seconds remaining, the 49er offense would leave little to no time for Cousins to work with as the first half came to a close. Receiving the ball to start the second half, the 49ers would be right back in business thanks to another big play by Deebo. A 49-yard run by San Francisco's Swiss army knife, would set things up inside the red zone. Rewarding Deebo for his efforts, Shanahan would dial up another run play that resulted in his second score of the game, this time a 3-yard touchdown. With their first lead of the day, on top 21-14, San Francisco was poised to tack on more. 

One play into Minnesota's ensuing possession, Cousins would throw a rare interception as his pass intended for Thielen was picked off by Azeez Al-Shaair and nearly taken to the house before he was tripped up at the 2-yardline following a 24-yard return. The Niners would waste no time cashing in on the takeaway and Cousins' third interception on the year, as running back Elijah Mitchell walked it into the end zone on the very next play. After a relatively quiet first half from the Minnesota rushing attack as they finished with 25 or fewer first half rushing yards for second week in a row, Vikings star running back Dalvin Cook began to wake up. A 30-yard run on the first play of Minnesota's ensuing drive, followed by a 24-yard catch and run a few plays later, both by Cook, backup running back Alexander Mattison picked up the pieces with the 6-yard rushing touchdown on the next play. However, the Vikings would come up short on the point-after as kicker Greg Joseph's extra-point attempt sailed wide right. San Francisco would make it a two-possession game with a field goal on their next drive, but again the Vikings came right back with a 99-yard kick return for a touchdown from Kene Nwangwu. With one kick return for a touchdown already under his belt this year, Nwangwu would be the first return man with two on the season, this one inching his team closer. But a failed two-point conversion would leave the Niners with a 31-26 lead. 

After having to punt, the 49ers would get a gift on a Dalvin Cook fumble as the Vikings running back was met in the backfield by San Francisco's Kevin Givens who knocked the ball loose, recovered by the defense. Unfortunately, Cook would need to be carted off the field as he left the game with an upper-body injury. Oddly enough, Deebo Samuel would be injured on the very next play, also in the backfield on a handoff that ended in a 6-yard loss. The air would be sucked out of the home crowd at Levi's Stadium momentarily before Deebo walked to the sideline under his own power where he would watch the rest of the game as a spectator. Adding to their lead with a field goal, San Francisco would go ahead 34-26. Minnesota would have a chance to tie the game as they were knocking on the door of another touchdown, but were stood up at the 3-yard line as Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer gambled for a second time on 4th and goal, but came up short. With a chance to ice the game and take an 11-point advantage, the 49ers marched for 7-minutes and 8-seconds, running 13-plays and traveling 67-yards before a missed field goal by kicker Robbie Gould from 42-yards out. As the kick drifted wide right, the Vikings would have one last chance to pull off the comeback. 

With no timeouts left and just under two-minutes remaining, Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins would need to orchestrate a 68-yard, touchdown-scoring drive, as well as a successful two-point conversion attempt to tie the game. And while things would look rather promising after a 23-yard connection to receiver Justin Jefferson, incompletions on three of Cousins' next four passes would spell doom as the 49er defense held on and forced Minnesota to turn the ball over on downs. Kneeling the ball for the last two plays, San Francisco held on for the much needed 34-26 victory to improve their record to 6-5 on the season and into sole possession of the NFC's second Wild Card spot. Stealing the show on offense and breaking more records on Sunday was Deebo Samuel. After becoming the first wide-receiver in 49ers franchise history with 1+ rushing touchdowns in three straight games since at least 1950, Deebo became the first WR in the Super Bowl era with 2 rushing touchdowns in a game. With 5 rushing touchdowns on the season, Deebo Samuel surpassed Tavon Austin's mark of 4 rushing touchdowns in 2015, setting a record for the most rushing touchdowns in a season by a wide receiver in NFL history. But the biggest stat of them all might be his receiving yards. Though he only caught one ball on Sunday for 12-yards, Deebo eclipsed the 1,000 receiving yards plateau, becoming the first WR in NFL history with 1,000 receiving yards, 5 receiving TDs and 5 rushing TDs in a season. Oh, and he also became the first 49ers WR with 1,000+ receiving yards in a season since Anquan Boldin in 2014. 

49ers running back Elijah Mitchell also made an impact in Sunday's game, compiling a career-high in scrimmage yards with 168, including 133 of them on the ground, as he and Deebo combined for 199 yards and three touchdowns on 33 carries. With four games of 100+ rush yards on the season now, Mitchell made some history of his own by surpassing Billy Kilmer (1961) for the most games of 100+ rush yards by a 49ers rookie since 1950. Not bad for a guy playing with a fractured finger. As for the quarterbacks, both Jimmy Garoppolo (230 yards, 1 touchdown, 1 interception) and Kirk Cousins (238 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1 interception) finished with similar stat lines in the passing department. San Francisco's Brandon Aiyuk led all receivers in receiving yards with 91 on 3 receptions. 

Week 13 Preview: Unfortunately, the 49ers win on Sunday did come at the expense of a few losses as both Deebo Samuel (groin) and All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner (hamstring) suffered injuries that will keep them off the field for their Week 13 visit up north to face the division rival Seattle Seahawks (3-8). With Warner out for one game and Samuel possibly out for the next two, the 49ers will need to keep pace in the playoff race and try to avenge their Week 4 loss to Seattle without two of their biggest pieces. Coming off a road loss on Monday Night Football to the Washington Football Team, Pete Carroll's Seahawks are spiraling out of control and have lost six of their last seven games since handing the 49ers a loss at Levi's. With three of those games without QB Russell Wilson under center, Seattle is riding a three-game skid with their leader back on the field. Nothing would help No. 3 get off the schneide more than a win at home against San Francisco. Hopefully, Jimmy G and company can put a stop to that as the Niners eye their fourth straight win and first in Seattle since the goal-line stand that decided the division back in 2019. 

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49ers Rout Jags in 30-10 Beatdown

Week 11 - Coming off a statement win at home against the division-rival Los Angeles Rams, the San Francisco 49ers (4-5) took a trip to the southeast to face the Jacksonville Jaguars (2-7) with a chance to get to .500. Though the Niners have looked much better overall on the road this season than they have at home, the atmosphere on Sunday would feel rather homely come kickoff as Jimmy Garoppolo and company were welcomed by a sea of red in the stands at Jacksonville's TIAA Bank Field. And much like the way they kicked things off on offense a week ago on Monday Night against the Rams, tiring the opposition with an 18-play, 93-yard opening-drive that spanned 11-minutes and 3-seconds, head coach Kyle Shanahan's offense picked up right where they left off in this one. Setting the tone with another run-heavy 20-play, 77-yard drive that chewed up 13-minutes and 5-seconds, San Francisco again found themselves in the drivers seat early on, imposing their will, but only managed to walk away with a field goal this time around.

Leading 3-0, the 49er defense forced a three and out on Jacksonville's first possession, allowing for San Francisco's offense to wear the Jags down some more. Needing less plays and time to travel further on their next possession, the 49ers were able to punch it into the end zone with ease on their second drive, thanks to a bit of running from receiver Deebo Samuel. Coming off NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors for his two-touchdown performance against the Rams a week ago, Deebo again proved to be a problem for the opposition in the running game, taking a handoff 25-yards to the house for a touchdown. Creeping up on 49ers all-time great and Hall of Famer Jerry Rice (9) as the only 49ers receiver since 1950 with more rushing touchdowns than Samuel who now has six, Deebo joined Rice as the only wide-receivers in 49ers franchise history to take home NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors multiple times in a single season (Rice did it on three occasions in 1990, 1992, 1994). As if Jacksonville wasn't gassed enough on defense, their offense didn't do them any favors as receiver Laviska Shenault Jr. was stripped of the ball just one play into the Jags' ensuing possession by San Francisco's Josh Norman who added to his total with an NFL-leading fifth forced fumble on the year, recovered by Pro Bowl linebacker Fred Warner. 

Getting under the skin of Jacksonville's exhausted defense, first-year head coach Urban Meyer would be without his starting safety less than midway through the second quarter as Rayshawn Jenkins was ejected from the game for throwing a punch at San Francisco's Jauan Jennings after a play, resulting in a penalty. It would be one of three penalties against Jacksonville that benefited the Niners on third down in the first half alone. A few plays later, the 49ers would strike pay dirt for a second consecutive drive as Garoppolo found Brandon Aiyuk in the back of the end zone for a touchdown. Jaguars quarterback and 2021 first overall pick Trevor Lawrence would get Jacksonville on the board on their next possession with a field goal just after the 2-minute warning, but San Francisco answered with a field goal of their own as Robbie Gould's 48-yarder completed the first half with the Niners on top, 20-3. Putting their first half dominance into perspective, the 49ers ran 39 plays on offense to Jacksonville's 15. 

Opening the second half the same way they did the first, the 49er defense forced a three and out punt on the Jags' first possession following three straight incomplete passes, while also having success on offense. Marching down the field with the ball, Deebo Samuel would again be at the forefront, as the 49ers made it inside the 5-yardline before deciding to go for it on 4th and goal. A gusty gamble by coach Shanahan would pay dividends as Garoppolo connected with tight-end George Kittle in the end zone from a yard out for the easy score. For Kittle it would be his third straight game with a touchdown, the longest streak of his career and the longest such streak by a 49ers tight-end since Vernon Davis' five consecutive games with a touchdown back in 2013. Things would begin to slow down as both teams exchanged a pair of punts, but San Francisco would receive a gift on special-teams as Tavon Austin muffed a fair-catch attempt that was recovered by the 49ers' Trent Sherfield. Taking advantage of the stellar field position, the Niners would add to their lead with a field goal to make it, 30-3. Jacksonville's best possession of the day would come on their final drive of the ballgame as the Jags marched 63-yards on 11-plays, capped off by a 1-yard run by running back James Robinson. With just over three minutes remaining, coach Shanahan would call on rookie QB Trey Lance to run out the clock as he rushed for the game-sealing first down with a 7-yard carry on 3rd and 5. 

Entering Sunday's matchup, Jimmy G would boast a QB Rating of 109.8 over his last three games, the best in the NFL over that span, and certainly looked the part again in the 30-10 victory over Jacksonville. Other than a missed touchdown pass to a wide-open Jeff Wilson Jr. in the end zone on the team's opening-drive, it was another spotless performance by Garoppolo who again didn't try to do too much and got the job done by taking what the opposing defense gave him on his way to completing 16 of 22 passes for 176 yards and 2 touchdowns. Opposite of Garoppolo, Trevor Lawrence threw for 158 yards on 16 of 25 passes, while being sacked three times in total, twice by the Niners' Nick Bosa who now has a career-high 10 sacks on the year. San Francisco's Brandon Aiyuk led all receivers with 7 receptions for 85-yards and a score, while Deebo Samuel outgained Jeff Wilson Jr. and Trey Sermon in rushing yards with a game-high 79 yards and a touchdown on 8 carries. 

Week 12 Preview: One of the more entertaining games on Sunday in Week 11 was the divisional showdown between the rival Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers. In a wild, back and forth melee between the two bitter rivals, the Vikes walked it off with a last-second, game-winning field goal to improve to 5-5 on the year. Like the 49ers who also improved to 5-5 with their win on Sunday, Minnesota is hoping to at least vie for a Wild Card spot if they're unable to catch the division-leading Packers. Setting up for a big game in Week 12, a win over the other team will do wonders as both squads look to keep pace in the NFC's Wild Card race. Playing some of the best ball of his career, Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins will try to take it to his former offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan dating back to their time spent in Washington, who was very high on trying to acquire Cousins prior to the trade with the Patriots that sent Jimmy Garoppolo to the Bay Area. With a number of weapons on offense in receivers Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen and running back Dalvin Cook, the 49ers will need another stout performance on defense like they've gotten in each of their last two games. 

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49ers to Host NFC Championship after Handling Vikings

NFC Divisional - Hosting their first ever playoff game in the six-year history of Levi's Stadium, the NFC's no. 1 seeded San Francisco 49ers put on a show and pulled off the win in dominant fashion in their first home playoff game since 2012. Facing off against the No. 6 seeded Minnesota Vikings who were coming off an upset win on the road against Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints, the dominant 49er defense proved to be too much for Minnesota's offense on Saturday. Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins was held in check virtually all afternoon long by a well rested San Francisco defense that received a week off thanks to the first-round BYE that saw the return of several key players. Having not won consecutive playoff games since 1987 when a No. 5 seeded Vikings team knocked off the No. 1 seeded 49ers on their way to an NFC Championship appearance, Kyle Shanahan made sure his team would not suffer a similar fate or be the ones that Minnesota ended that skid against.

Coming into the game, all the talk revolved around whether or not 49ers QB Jimmy Garoppolo could be trusted in what would be his first career start in the playoffs. As if Cousins who was coming off his first win in the postseason in two career starts, had some over the top advantage over his counterpart. And after a three and out forced by the San Francisco defense, Garoppolo would waste little time to prove that his postseason experience or lack thereof would be a non-factor as he completed 5-of-6 passes while hitting four different receivers during their opening-drive that ended in a touchdown pass to his favorite red zone target in Kendrick Boune. The Vikings would answer quickly with a touchdown of their own when 49ers cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon who has struggled mightily in the second half of the season, continued to have issues in coverage as he was beaten badly on two plays and penalized for pass-interference on another. But none worse than the 41-yard touchdown he surrendered on a pass to Stefon Diggs as Witherspoon fell to the ground, allowing his man to walk into the end zone for the easy score. With the game tied at 7-7 and Witherspoon clearly a liability in coverage, Shanahan and defensive coordinator Robert Saleh made the decision to bench Witherspoon the rest of the game in favor of his backup Emmanuel Moseley.

Both teams would exchange punts before San Francisco made a second trip to the end zone on a touchdown by running back Tevin Coleman. Setup by a pair of big plays by Deebo Samuel, Coleman sprung forward for the go-ahead touchdown. Looking to add to their lead following another Vikings three and out, Garoppolo's lone mistake on the afternoon would come in the form of an interception as he was picked off by Minnesota linebacker Eric Kendricks. Taking over in the red zone, Cousins and company would again fail to get much of anything going and were forced to settle for a field goal. Hanging onto a 14-10 lead at the half, the 49ers would turn things up on defense and pitch a shutout in the second half. Opening the third quarter with the first of two Robbie Gould field goals on the afternoon, San Francisco's Richard Sherman would come up with his third career postseason interception on third and long when he stepped in front of a Kirk Cousins pass intended for Vikings receiver Adam Thielen. Hoping to shake off his first career playoff interception, Cousins would fail to find an answer for San Francisco's defense the rest of the way as three of their next four possessions would end in three and out punts and the other two ending on turnover on downs.

Dialing up eight consecutive run plays on offense following the Sherman interception, Tevin Coleman would find the end zone again to become the first 49er with two rushing touchdowns in a playoff game since Frank Gore in 2013. With one last field goal at the start of the fourth quarter to increase their lead to 17-points, the 49er defense would do the rest as a sack party would ensue. Niner defensive-end Dee Ford who might've benefited most from the BYE week and returned to the field after missing five of the last six games due to a hamstring injury, was one of five players to record a sack, with rookie sensation Nick Bosa leading the way with two quarterback sacks on the day. Having already been named to the Pro Bowl and the odds on favorite to win this year's Defensive Rookie of the Year Award, Bosa becomes the first 49ers rookie to tally two sacks in a playoff game since Dana Stubblefield in 1993. Helping his team set a franchise playoff-best with only 147 total yards allowed, the 49er defense smothered their way to a 27-10 victory and held Vikings running back Dalvin Cook to only 18 yards rushing on nine carries. Meanwhile, Niners running back Tevin Coleman rushed for 105 yards on 22 attempts. Completing 21 of 29 pass attempts, Cousins threw for 172 yards compared to Garoppolo's 131, but threw the ball ten more times and needed ten more completions than his counterpart. While it was a rather pedestrian performance in the passing game for Garoppolo, the dominant defense and efficient rushing attack was plentiful to secure the win over Minnesota which gave the 49ers five wins in six playoff meetings against the Vikings, all of which in the Divisional-round which sets a record for the most wins vs a team in one playoff round.

NFC Championship Preview - The San Francisco 49ers will be making their first trip to the NFC Championship since 2013 when the team made it to three consecutive NFC title games under head coach Jim Harbaugh and their first time hosting since 2012. Standing in between the 49ers and a trip to Miami is Aaron Rodgers and the No.2 seed Green Bay Packers. After serving up a 37-8 beating on Sunday Night Football back in Week 12 which saw one of the worst games statistically of Rodgers' career, Shanahan and the 49ers know that what happened in the Week 12 blowout victory means little to nothing heading into this one, with the exception of what they know they need to do in order to punch their ticket to Super Bowl XLIV. Having grown up a huge 49er fan in nearby Chico, California, the future Hall of Fame quarterback Rodgers is not to be taken lightly and has his sights on revenge for both the earlier meeting this season and the two Divisional-round losses the 49ers have served him in the past. Since their Week 12 loss to San Francisco, the Packers, who like the Niners finished the regular season 13-3, have not lost a game. One way the 49er defense can change that is by duplicating what they did in the previous match-up when they held Rodgers in check on third down (0-for-10) and prevented him from completing a single pass beyond 10-yards. Despite escaping with a few close wins, Green Bay has been rolling ever since their last trip to Levi's and will be seeking, "redemption" as Packers head coach Matt LaFleur described it during his post-game speech in the team locker room following their close 28-23 win at Lambeau over the Seattle Seahawks.

Spread - According to Las Vegas sportsbooks and odds makers, San Francisco opens as 7-point favorites with the over/under at 45.


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Vikes Hand Garoppolo, 49ers First Loss

Week 1 - Football season is back! With the NFL's 2018 regular season officially underway following Thursday Night's opener between NFC heavyweights Atlanta Falcons and the the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, the San Francisco 49ers would see their first action on Sunday morning in a road match-up with the Minnesota Vikings. Given the daunting task of opening the season in hostile territory against the league's best defense from a year ago and a team looking to bounce back after being on the receiving end of a 38-7 beat down in their own home in last year's NFC title game, the 49ers would surely have their work cutout for them in Week 1 if they wanted to keep their new starting quarterback's record unblemished. As if defeating a Vikings team at home where they won all but one of their eight regular season games from a season ago wasn't challenging enough, the Niners who entered Sunday with the league's best active regular season winning-streak at five games, have lost each of their last five visits to Minnesota. Of course none of those defeats came with Garoppolo under center who the 49er faithful are hoping can serve as their savior the same way he did down the stretch to closeout 2017 when he led them on that magical five-game journey.

Having allowed a measly 10-points or fewer in five of their last seven regular season games dating back to last season, the stingy Vikings defense would look to carry that streak into 2018 and had other plans for Jimmy G and the streaking 49ers. And though San Francisco would eclipse the 10-point mark, they were unable to end their Minnesota skid as the Vikings defense gave Garoppolo his first taste of defeat as he suffered the first loss of his professional career in a 24-16 final, bringing his record to 7-1 as a starter. The 49ers had plenty of opportunities on offense and even had a chance to march down the field and tie the game in the final minutes, but were ultimately doomed by the myriad of self-inflicted miscues on both sides of the ball made throughout the game. And though his teammates didn't do him any favors either, from his receivers dropping passes to the guys on defense missing tackles, where Garoppolo made mistakes, his counterpart did not. Excited to show off their new toy on offense, the recently acquired Kirk Cousins enjoyed an impressive Vikings debut at QB in which he didn't commit any turnovers and threw for 244 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

With as much talk surrounding Minnesota's defense, their offense is nothing to scoff at either. With the return of Dalvin Cook who took the league by storm a season ago before suffering a torn ACL in Week 4 which ultimately put an end to his rookie campaign, the former Florida State Seminole and Heisman finalist picked up right where he left off before the injury with a handful of big gains in the first half. Minnesota would start the scoring with a field goal in the first quarter before taking a 10-0 lead on Cousins' connection in the end zone with receiver Stefon Diggs, catching 49ers cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon off-guard from behind as he failed to locate the ball which allowed Diggs to make the easy grab from 22-yards out. The Niners would answer with a field goal before missing out on a golden opportunity that could've tied the game. After a big run from Cook who broke multiple tackles before being surprised from behind as rookie linebacker Fred Warner punched the ball loose forcing a fumble recovered by Richard Sherman, San Francisco embarked on a 16-play drive that made it all the way to the 1-yard line before Alfred Morris coughed the ball up with a fumble at the 1-yard line. The costly turnover would be one of several stall outs endured in the red zone for San Francisco.

Already without free-agent acquisition Jerick McKinnon who suffered a torn ACL prior to San Francisco's pre-season finale and was acquired to be Kyle Shanahan's No. 1 weapon at the running back position, the 49ers would lose another one of their key cogs on offense. Receiver Marquise Goodwin who was signed to a new three-year extension during the offseason and has proven to be one of Garoppolo's favorite targets, would be forced to leave the game in the first half after banging knees with a member of the Vikings and was diagnosed with what team doctors described as a quad injury, putting an early end to his day and preventing him from contributing on the field. From there, Shanahan and Garoppolo would have to be creative in the passing game as rookie receiver Dante Pettis and fullback Kyle Juszczyk logged the two biggest gains thru the air for the Niners on Sunday, hauling in receptions of 39 and 56 yards respectively.

But the biggest plays for San Francisco's offense were the ones that weren't made as both receiver Pierre Garcon and tight-end George Kittle each had chances to strike pay dirt, but were tagged with drops. Then came one of the bigger back-breakers as Garoppolo had a pass intended for receiver Kendrick Bourne picked off and returned for a pick-six. Bourne admitted after the game to running the wrong route on the costly turnover, a perfect example of the type of mistake you can't make when playing a stingy defense and a talented football team like that of Minnesota's, not to mention in their own home. And while the Niners settled for field goals with kicker Robbie Gould going three-for-three on the day, Cousins was busy connecting for his second touchdown pass of the game, an 11-yard strike to tight-end Kyle Rudolph. The final score of the afternoon for the Vikings would appear to put some fire under the 49er offense as Garoppolo and company finally responded with a trip to the end zone as Jimmy G's first touchdown of the season came with less than a minute remaining the 3rd quarter. After being pressured and bouncing off a defender, Garoppolo rolled out to his left, throwing off-balance to find Pettis in the back of the end zone for the score. Gould's third and final field goal would make it a 24-16 affair before the Niner defense committed without a doubt their biggest miscue of the afternoon.

Facing a pivotal 4th and 1 call with 3 minutes remaining in regulation, Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer sent his offense onto the field for one thing and one thing only -- to draw the defense off-sides. With the play clock down to its final second, the trick would work on second year defensive-end Solomon Thomas who was called for neutral zone infraction which would give Minnesota a new set of downs. Despite the bone-headed penalty which took time off the clock, the Niners would still be given one final chance to tie the game and send it into overtime, but would need to march the ball down the field 89-yards with less than 2 minutes remaining. Instead, Garoppolo who was under heavy pressure, hurried a pass intended for Trent Taylor that was picked off, sealing the win. The interception would be the third of the day for Garoppolo who finished with a game-high 261 passing yards and one touchdown pass as he completed 15 of 33 passes for a QB rating of 45.1. Putting into perspective just how off a day Sunday was for Garoppolo, his previous low in the QBR department was 82.4 as Jimmy G suffered his first loss on a football field since December 13, 2013 when he was still under center for the Eastern Illinois University football program.

Overall, Sunday's loss was a sloppy performance for a Niners team that was without two of their top weapons on offense and a defense that is still trying to establish their identity. While players like rookie linebacker Fred Warner who tallied 12 tackles in his debut to go with the forced fumble and third-year defensive-end DeForest Buckner who logged 2.5 sacks showed flashes of greatness, there's still plenty of areas that need to be cleaned up for this team to click. However, that's nothing out of the ordinary for a team one week into the season. Given communication duties in his first glimpse of meaningful NFL action, Warner resembled a promising young defender who should only get better with Reuben Foster by his side when the two will be allowed to team up come Week 3 after Foster serves his suspension stemming from a series of off-the-field arrests during the off-season. As for Buckner, his 2.5 sacks were the most by a 49er in a single game since Aldon Smith's 5.5 sack performance back on November 19, 2012. San Francisco will need the help of them and others if they plan to get even in the win column in Week 2.

Week 2 Preview - Playing at Levi's Stadium for the first time this season, the 49ers will host the (0-1) Detroit Lions who are coming off a 48-17 shellacking at home at the hands of the New York Jets on Monday Night Football. Quarterback Matt Stafford who was picked off by the Jets defense four times on Monday for the fifth time in his career, will look to shake off one of the worst starts of his career and redeem himself against a San Francisco defense. With Detroit featuring a mediocre run game under first-year head coach Matt Patricia, DeForest Buckner and co. will have their eyes set on Stafford in hopes of making him feel just as uncomfortable as he was against the Jets. As for Garoppolo, facing a defense not nearly as ferocious as Minnesota's, I expect to see San Francisco's offense bounce back in the red zone, somewhere they didn't fair too well in Week 1. Meanwhile on the injury front, aside from receiver Marquise Goodwin who's been listed as day-to-day nursing his quad, the health at left-guard will be one coach Kyle Shanahan will keep an eye on heading into Week 2 as both Mike Person and Joshua Garnett went down with foot injuries against Minnesota, forcing 2018 first round pick Mike McGlinchey to man the position for the first time in his life and doing an exceptional job considering.


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New-look 49ers just fine in season-opener

After a long wait from 49er fans ready to put the tumultuous offseason behind them, football finally made its return on Monday night as San Francisco hosted the Minnesota Vikings. With the story heading into the game swirling around the return of two of the game's best at their respective position -- All-Pro linebacker NaVorro Bowman and future Hall of Fame running back Adrian Peterson, only one would come out victorious. Bowman, who saw his first regular season action since sustaining a left knee injury during the 2014 NFC Championship over a year and a half ago, looked like a man possessed with no cobwebs at all. As for Peterson, who hasn't played in over a year after serving a suspension stemming from a child-abuse case filed against him, the former NFL MVP looked rather rusty.

With all eyes on Peterson in the run game, it would be San Francisco's running back who stole the show. Making his first career start, second-year running back Carlos Hyde would make his starting debut a memorable one by putting up career-highs in almost every category. Hyde led the way for the 49ers offense, shouldering the load left by the franchises all-time leading rusher Frank Gore who departed during the offseason for Indianapolis. In it's first game without the future Hall of Famer Gore, San Francisco's run-game didn't skip a beat as Hyde rushed for 168 yards and 2 touchdowns on 26 carries, spinning and diving his way into the end zone on one carry, reminiscent of a Madden juke move. But before Hyde found the end zone to put his team on the board, the 49ers endured a special-teams nightmare in the first quarter. On their opening-drive, QB Colin Kaepernick and Hyde led the offense on a promising drive that sputtered near the red zone and went up in flames as kicker Phil Dawson had his field goal attempt blocked and nearly taken to the house. Luckily, Minnesota would fail to capitalize as Vikings kicker Blair Walsh shanked a field goal wide right from 44-yards out. The 49er special teams would later shoot themselves in the foot once again when former Australian rugby star Jarryd Hayne fumbled his first career touch when called on to return a punt.

With a 7-0 lead heading into the half following the first of Hyde's two rushing touchdowns, rookie head coach Jim Tomsula addressed his team's sloppy play as the team played a much more fluid game during the second half, not committing nearly as many penalties as they did in quarters 1 and 2. 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick didn't overwhelm anyone with his numbers, but logged a clean sheet while managing to play a turnover-free game. In many ways, Kaepernick registered an Alex Smith-like performance, playing it safe and not forcing anything as he completed 17 of 26 passes for 165 yards while gaining 41 yards on the ground. On the other side, Minnesota's Teddy Bridgewater who many are expecting to take a huge leap forward this year, had arguably his worst night as a pro yet. Bridgewater threw for 231 yards and was picked off once by Tremaine Brock on a night where he was sacked 5 times as Minnesota's only points came via a field goal. 

Seeking his first 100-yard performance in a season-opener since 2009, Adrian Peterson entered Monday night's game having struggled against the 49ers throughout his career. With only 51.3 yards per game and 0 touchdowns in 4 games vs San Francisco, Peterson saw much of the same as the 49er defense shut him down and held him to only 31 yards rushing on 10 carries. Credit first year defensive coordinator Eric Mangini who drew up the perfect game plan on the ground for Peterson and through the air for Bridgewater as neither looked comfortable all night. On a night where the 49ers debuted their new black and red uniforms, the first ever alternate jersey in franchise history, San Francisco pulled off the 20-3 victory. And despite Carlos Hyde's 168 yard performance which marked the most rushing yards by a Niner since 2011 (Gore) and was the second-most yards by a 49er running back in a season opener behind only Garrison Hearst's 187 in 1998, the game ball was awarded to coach Jimmy T in the locker room after the game with Kaepernick doing the honors. It would be the 7th consecutive win for SF on Monday Night Football, the second-longest active streak behind only the hated Seahawks who have won nine straight. 

Week 2 Preview: Even after his team won in his first career game as head coach, Jim Tomsula made it known that there was little time to celebrate and that it was on to Pittsburgh where the (0-1) Steelers will look to bounce back from a 28-21 loss to the defending champion Patriots in the season-opener. Though the (1-0) 49er defense looked stout in the win against Minnesota, they'll be given the tough task of having to face Big Ben Roethlisberger at home in the Steelers' home-opener. The Niners will look to spoil Pittsburgh's homecoming and make it 2-0 as defensive coordinator Eric Mangini renews his rivalry with the Steelers, a team he's grown to know quite well spending time in the AFC as head coach of the Cleveland Browns and New York Jets. 

Injury News: 49ers RB Reggie Bush was the only reported injury after Week 1's win as he sustained a calf strain in the first quarter which forced him to leave the game. Bush has been listed as week-to-week which opens the door for rookie Jarryd Hayne who should see his reps at running back increase come Week 2.


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Week 3: Sloppy 49ers unable to solve Ponder's Vikings

After logging wins against the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions in the first two weeks, both of whom made the playoffs last season, the San Francisco 49ers were given their easiest task yet. So they thought. But the hosting 1-1 Minnesota Vikings would show no signs of intimidation facing one of the league's top teams and refused to be bullied in their own home. They would prove just that by going for it on a gutsy fourth-and-goal call to begin the game that paid off for Minnesota head coach Leslie Frazier. Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder executed Minnesota's opening-drive as well as anybody we've seen the 49ers face this year, capping the series off with a touchdown pass to his tight-end Kyle Rudolph and eating up over half the first quarter in doing so as the 49ers found themselves trailing for the first time this year, 7-0. 

Though the second quarter would treat the San Francisco offense much nicer than the first quarter did, quarter no. 2 wouldn't be very pretty either. 49ers QB Alex Smith and running back Frank Gore got things going on their second drive, as the two combined to get well within David Akers' territory, setting up the Pro-Bowl kicker for a 29-yard field goal to make it 7-3, Minnesota. But Christian Ponder would answer back by doing the unthinkable against the 49ers dominant run defense by scrambling up the middle for a 23-yard touchdown, channeling his inner Randal Cunningham and giving the Vikings a 14-3 cushion. With a chance to inch a bit closer nearing the two-minute warning, Alex Smith and company once again put the offense in position to tack on another three points, but this time David Akers' 43 yarder would be blocked, giving Minnesota a chance to increase their lead. A series of mainly short passes from Ponder would do just that, setting up Vikings kicker Blair Walsh who split the uprights from 52-yards out as Jim Harbaugh found his team down, 17-3 at the half. 

Having been downright outplayed in all three phases of the game in the first half, the 49ers would need both a solution on offense as well as an answer for Christian Ponder. And while they seemed to be on track by opening the second half with a 94-yard kick return from Kyle Williams resulting in another Akers field goal as well as a touchdown pass from Alex Smith to Vernon Davis after forcing a Minnesota three-and-out, it wouldn't be long before the 17-13 deficit would once again reach double-digits for the 49ers. Another 7-minute long drive orchestrated by Ponder ended much like the first with Ponder linking up in the end zone once again with his tight-end Rudolph who this time made a circus catch with one hand. With both the score (24-13) and the clock against them, the 49ers were in need of some magic if they planned on making a comeback. 49ers running back Frank Gore who hadn't fumbled since Week 5 of last year, would pick a terrible time to lose his first fumble of 2012, fumbling on San Francisco's first play of the drive. 

Gore's turnover ended a career-high streak of 255 consecutive carries without a fumble and seemed to have put the game away for good. But after each exchanging a pair of punts, Minnesota's second-string running back Toby Gerhart would fumble not once, but twice on back-to-back drives. But San Francisco would be unable to capitalize as they were courteous enough to give the ball right back on back-to-back turnovers of their own. Alex Smith who's been near perfect this season in the turnover department would be anything but during week 3 as the 49ers final two drives ended in an interception intended for WR Michael Crabtree and a fumble as Jared Allen greeted the quarterback with a sack, forcing another 49er fumble as San Francisco fell for the first time this year, 24-13. Ironically the 49ers first loss came on a day Alex Smith threw for more passing yards than the opposition as his 204 yards on 24-of-35 attempts bested Ponder's 198 yards on 21-of-35 pass attempts.

What was most puzzling regarding the loss was that Vikings running back Adrian Peterson was kept out of the end zone and held to under 100 rushing yards (86-yards on 25 carries) and yet the 49ers weren't able to come out on top. And while the 49ers looked unprepared for what they faced in Minnesota, the Vikings appear to be a better team than they've been portrayed to be and deserve all the credit in their upsetting win on Sunday. And though the loss is inexcusable for the 49ers, you can be sure that head coach Jim Harbaugh will take it as a wake-up call similar to the one they got from the early loss to Dallas last season and have his team alert and ready for battle come next Sunday. Hopefully his plan on offense will include more of Randy Moss who made his first trip to Minnesota as a member of the visiting team with only 27-yards and 3 receptions to show for. 

Week 4 Preview & Prediction: Week 4 will see the 49ers continue their current road trip as they get set to face a 2-1 New York Jets team that similar to theirs is best known for their defensive capabilities and run oriented offense. Luckily for Alex Smith and co., the 49ers offense will have one less problem to worry about as the Jets will be without the best cornerback in the game as it was learned that Darelle Revis will miss the remainder of the season due to a torn MCL in his left knee, dealing a huge blow to not only Rex Ryan's expensive D, but also his playoff hopes. The meeting at New York's MetLife Stadium in New Jersey will also mean that the 49ers will get to see their first glimpse of Tim Tebow. Having now taste defeat this season, I expect the tandem of Alex Smith and Frank Gore to have a much better outing on offense this week as well as a bounce back performance from the 49ers defense who should provide plenty of problems for the quarterback duo of Mark Sanchez and Tim Tebow. With that said, look for the 49ers to return to the bay area 3-1 after a 24-17 win over Gang Green. 


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