Niner Noise
FanSided

49ers vs. Vikings: The good, bad and ugly from Week 1 loss

By Akshaj Dwivedula

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - SEPTEMBER 09: Head coach Kyle Shanahan of the San Francisco 49ers walks on the field after the game against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium on September 9, 2018 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings defeated the 49ers 24-16. (Photo by Adam Bettcher/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - SEPTEMBER 09: Head coach Kyle Shanahan of the San Francisco 49ers walks on the field after the game against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium on September 9, 2018 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings defeated the 49ers 24-16. (Photo by Adam Bettcher/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 4
Next
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – AUGUST 18: Kirk Cousins #8 of the Minnesota Vikings warms up before the preseason game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on August 18, 2018 at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – AUGUST 18: Kirk Cousins #8 of the Minnesota Vikings warms up before the preseason game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on August 18, 2018 at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /

The Bad

Now, we get to the more depressing parts. The 49ers offense was atrocious once they got to the red zone, getting one touchdown on five trips down. The defense had a few boneheaded plays which pretty much ended the game for the 49ers, and there were far too many turnovers. In what was a clearly winnable game for the 49ers, they need to clean some stuff up.

QB Jimmy Garoppolo

So Jimmy G didn’t stay undefeated. It was bound to happen eventually. However, I’m sure no one was really expecting this type of performance out of him. Granted, there were a lot of dropped touchdowns and first downs, but still, anytime a QB throws three interceptions, they probably will lose the game.

The first interception was more bad luck than anything else. See here:

Kendrick Bourne (No. 84) clearly slips, messing up the play and costing the 49ers a touchdown. The other interceptions, however, were all on Jimmy G. They were poor throws and terrible reads.

Clearly, it was not a good game for the 49ers star QB.

DE Solomon Thomas

Rarely does one play put someone on a list of bad performances, but Solomon Thomas might have just done it. He did what might be the most bone-headed play possible. On 4th-and-1, when the Vikings were clearly trying to draw the 49ers offside, HE WENT OFFSIDE.

It cost the 49ers a minute of time, 20 or so yards of field position, and essentially the game.

Thomas was very average in the game, finishing with only one tackle and not really impacting the game. After seeing what Khalil Mack did to the Packers, I wonder if the 49ers should have added him in a potential package to the Raiders. The two players were polar opposites today at least.

RB Alfred Morris

Again, rarely does one play or action justify putting a player here. But if Thomas made the worst play in today’s game, then Alfred Morris was a runaway for second. Just look at this:

A fumble at the 1-yard line. The crushing loss of momentum blowing away as the 49ers walked away from the redzone without points. Those points would have been huge.

This play changed the entire game.

But apart from his fumbles, Morris was clearly outplayed by Matt Breida. Niner Noise’s Peter Panacy wrote that Breida should have started over Morris for this game. Boy, was he right. Breida finished with 46 yards on 11 carries and NO FUMBLES. Morris had 38 yards on 12 carries. Neither player was special, but Breida didn’t give up the ball right at the goal-line.