Week 12 Post Match Review: Vikings at 49ers

By Scooter_McG 

This wasn't the 49ers best performance of the season. Their best performance was two weeks ago when they beat the Rams 31-10 on Monday Night Football, just one week after an embarrassing loss to the undermanned Cardinals. 

This wasn't the 49ers most dominant performance of the season. Their most dominant performance was last week when they dismantled the Jaguars 30-10, in a game where they scored on all of their first five possessions on the way to a 27-3 lead early in the 3rd quarter and only let the Jaguars find the end zone after they pulled many of their starters. 

However, I do think this was the 49ers most impressive win of the season. And it was their most impressive precisely because they didn't play their best football of the season. Because they weren't at their most dominant for large portions of the game. Because, unlike their past two victories, they actually faced some adversity during the game. And unlike what we saw too often during the first half of the season, they overcame it. 

Shaky Start

The game got off to an inauspicious start for the 49ers with Jimmy G throwing an INT on their first possession. That 49ers opening drive on offense saw a departure from the formula that carried them to victory the previous two weeks, as Shanahan called up more pass plays than run plays as he attempted to take advantage of the Vikings aggressively defending the run. When Jimmy G is on his game he can hurt defenses that play the run too aggressively, so in a way it made sense to do so and try and loosen up the Vikings defense. The problem is that Jimmy G can be pretty hit or miss when it comes to being on his game, especially at the start of games. Against the Vikings he was definitely more miss than hit in the first quarter. 

The Vikings turned that INT and short field into 7 points and an early lead. More worryingly, they moved the ball easily on that drive. For a 49ers team that relied heavily on getting off to fast starts in their recent resurgence, and had a bad habit of slow starts through the first 8 games of the season that led to 5 defeats, it was exactly the type of start that could have had the players thinking "here we go again" (and no doubt had more than just this fan thinking it too). 

But Regathered Themselves

Rather than fold under the early pressure the 49ers were able to refocus and lead a scoring drive of their own. The 49ers first points of the game would come courtesy of a 3rd and 13 conversion from Jimmy G to Aiyuk for 37 yards to prevent a 3 and out. They would then carry that momentum with three straight big runs, finishing with a 20 yard scamper by Deebo around the right edge to the end zone. 

The teams would trade TDs again before the half, taking a 14-14 score to the break. The 49ers second TD just before the half was a return to the run dominated, play clock chewing football we've seen the past two weeks, with Elijah Mitchell shouldering the load for his team and keeping the offense ahead of the chains most of the drive. But again, Jimmy G made a crucial 3rd down conversion to Aiyuk on 3rd and long late in the drive, this time a 24 yarder that got them to the 6 yard line. The 49ers would score on the ensuing play (after an offsides penalty on the Vikings put them at the 3), with a nicely lofted pass from Jimmy G to Jennings at the right pylon.  

The scoreline at the half was reflective of the game to that point; a fairly evenly matched contest with both teams having periods of good and bad play.

Crazy 3rd Quarter

The game turned completely on its head in the 3rd quarter. It started with a run from Deebo Samuel that showcased his truly electric playmaking ability, as he used his speed and power to elude a tackler in the backfield then fired upfield like a bullet, outracing the Vikings defenders on his way to a 49 yard gain. It could probably have been more if he had allowed Brunskill to make the block on the last defender, as none of the chasing Vikings players looked like catching Deebo from behind. It didn't matter though, as Deebo finished off the drive a few plays later with a 3 yard TD run to the left edge, with a willing Elijah Mitchell providing the lead block.

The 49ers would promptly get the ball back on the Vikings first play of the half as Cousins lobbed the ball directly to Al-Shaair who returned it to the Vikings 3. One play later and the 49ers extended their lead to 28-14 on a 3 yard run by Mitchell. And just like that the 49ers were well on top and in control of the game... or so it seemed. 

The craziness of the 3rd quarter didn't end there. The Vikings pulled a TD back on their next drive, going 75 yards in just five plays. And then after a FG by the 49ers, the Vikings would return the ensuing kickoff 99 yards for another TD to bring the score back to 31-26. In total, 32 points were scored in the 3rd quarter, and could have been 34 if the Vikings had converted their TDs to 7 points.

Defense Closes the Game  

In the end the 49ers would steady the ship through their defense. First, Kevin Givens made one of the plays of the game as he knifed through the Vikings DL to hit Dalvin Cook almost as he was being handed the ball. The hit was so violent it jarred the ball loose and knocked Cook out of the game with damage to his shoulder. Al-Shaair recovered the fumble at the Vikings 9 yard line, which would lead to another FG and an 8 point lead. 

On the next drive the Vikings methodically marched down the field getting to the 49ers 6 yard line with a full set of downs. But the 49ers defense again stood up, stuffing two straight runs for minimal gain and then forcing two incompletions to get a turnover on downs. 

The 49ers should then have effectively iced the game on their next possession as they moved the ball into FG range, only for Robbie Gould to miss the 42 yard try with 2 minutes left on the clock. But the defense did the job once again, forcing another turnover on downs with some excellent coverage to close out the game. 

Dynamic Duo

The combination of Elijah Mitchell and Deebo Samuel was too good for the Vikings defense in this one. They ran for 199 yards combined on 33 carries, and would have been over 200 yards if Deebo hadn't pulled up on his last run of the day. Mitchell once again showed he is more than capable of carrying the load for the 49ers, consistently churning out positive yards with a smattering of chunk plays on his way to 100+ yard days. This was his fourth 100+ yard game in just 8 NFL career games played. Meanwhile Deebo is quickly proving himself to be one of the most electric playmakers in the NFL today. 

Injuries a Concern

The win did unfortunately come at some cost. Deebo hurt his groin on that last run that lost 6 yards, as he pulled up almost immediately after getting the ball. Fred Warner also exited the game, as did Dre Greenlaw and Trey Sermon. We'll know more about the extent of the injuries in the coming days, but it would be a big blow to lose either Deebo or Warner for any extended amount of time. 

Big Picture

It's strange to think that three weeks ago the 49ers looked like a team that was going nowhere and had little chance of making the playoffs. The win over the Vikings now makes it three straight for the 49ers, and puts the 49ers in 6th spot in the NFC playoff race, 1 game ahead of the 7th seed, and 1 game back from the 5th seed (Rams, who lost to the Packers). 

It's easy to win when you can be the bully for 60 minutes. The test of a team's character comes when it is faced with adversity, faced with challenges. The good teams are the ones that find ways to work through that adversity and more often than not can find the path to victory. Against the Vikings, the 49ers proved they can stand up when it matters to finish a game and in my opinion that actually bodes better for their reinvigorated 2021 prospects than their two blowout wins did.