NFL
By: Brock Vierra
As the San Francisco 49ers prepare to take on the Vikings in Minnesota, they’ll need a win to stay on par with the Eagles for the number one seed in the NFC. As they say, styles make fights and this battle on Monday Night is no different. Kyle Shanahan is very familiar with Kirk Cousins from their time in Washington and Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell comes from the Sean McVay school of thought, an offensive mindset McVay developed during his own time in Washington while working under Shanahan and his father Mike. The Vikings are desperate for a win so here are three keys to ensure a 49er victory.
The 49ers need to contain Danielle Hunter
Almost reborn in the Brian Flores defense, Danielle Hunter went from being a player on the verge of free agency to now demanding top dollar, and rightfully so. In his six games this season, Hunter has 38 tackles and an NFL-leading 8 sacks. Brock Purdy is a system quarterback but quite frankly every quarterback is a system quarterback. You design the system to fit the tendencies of your field general.
However, despite the work of Shanahan and his staff, there are some concerning tendencies that rear their ugly head for Brock Purdy from time to time. Two of those are holding the ball too long and putting the ball into dangerous situations under pressure. Those tendencies play right into Hunter’s skillset.
The 49ers have multiple offensive playmakers banged up. Deebo Samuel is out, Trent Williams is doubtful and Christian McCaffery is questionable. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Hunter who plays dominantly on the right-hand side be moved to take on backup Jaylon Moore. Therefore the 49ers need to use a lot of 12 personnel, having George Kittle, Kyle Juszczyk and Charlie Woerner assist in the blocking responsibilities. Minnesota will move Hunter back and forth so having constant six to seven-man protection will be important to maintain offensive production.
As for Purdy, he should thrown the ball less than 20 times in this game and when he does, it should be short, quick passes for continual gains. Don’t allow Purdy to throw away the game by playing outside of the offensive structure.
Run The Football
The Vikings defense is currently averaging about 4 yards per carry. This number has contributed to their poor start to the season. As we all know, the 49ers’ offense is built off of their ability to run the football. With mauler Trent Williams listed as doubtful, this is where you rely on the flexibility of Kyle Juszczyk and George Kittle. I expect the 49ers to be able to run the ball up the middle but they also have a tremendous ability to seal the outside and that’s exactly what they need to do.
If McCaffery is unable to go, Elijah Mitchell and Jordan Mason are more than capable of producing the yardage needed to sustain offensive efforts. They’ll open up the short passing game and for as much as Brian Flores loves to stack the box, he also loves to leave his defensive backs exposed to the play-action pass. Use Mason and Mitchell well and you’ll find Brandon Aiyuk racking in massive amounts of yardage. He’s too fast for the Vikings to believe that their team will be able to win enough 1 v 1 matchups to win the game.
Bend but Don’t Break
Kirk Cousins currently sits behind Tua Tagovailoa in passing yardage. He also had Justin Jefferson who will miss an extended period of time with an injury. With the Vikings relying on K.J. Osborn and first-round rookie Jordan Addison, one would think that their offensive production would take a massive hit. To an extent, you would be right but Kevin O’Connell has done a good job in changing up how his offense works.
T.J. Hockenson has become Cousins top target and with Dre Greenlaw questionable, DC Steve Wilks will have a tough time dealing with the way Minnesota spreads and shreds defenses. However, Minnesota will also have a tough time scoring touchdowns, in part due to the lack of a strong running game. It’s okay to give Minnesota the underneath while slowly tightening things up as they go downfield. That’s actually the way modern football works nowadays.
Keep up pressure with a four-man rush, mix in exotic blitzes, and keep a safety up top. Make Cousins throw to the outside and if they cross the 49ers 30-yard line, start pressing pass catchers on the line. Cousins exploits open voids of space but often times he is unable to fit the ball into tight windows. Once there’s not too much space to go, those voids disappear and so should Minnesota’s opportunities to punch in in for six.
The 49ers should win this game-handedly but grinding out a victory isn’t bad either. Stick with what you know and the talent on the roster should deliver the 49ers their sixth win of the season.
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