49ers: Ranking the 5 best performances from playoff win vs. Vikings

No. 1: Running Back Tevin Coleman

For the past few weeks, running back Raheem Mostert had been the star of the San Francisco 49ers’ offense on the ground. And while Mostert had himself a good game, too, picking up 58 yards on 12 carries, the biggest star from San Francisco on offense was fellow running back Tevin Coleman.

Coleman had been something of a non-factor in the second half of the regular season, which partially allowed Mostert to become a bigger force.

But Kyle Shanahan never seemed to lose faith in Coleman, and the veteran running back rewarded both his head coach and the offense accordingly on Saturday.

The two touchdowns were great, yes. Yet one has to tack on Coleman’s 105 rush yards on 22 carries for an average of 4.8 yards per attempt—all against a Vikings defense that held Alvin Kamara and the New Orleans Saints under 100 rushing yards in the Wild Card round the previous week.

Coleman’s efforts on the ground helped negate a solid Vikings pass rush, which still managed to net two sacks, but ultimately had no answer for the Niners’ ground game.

This, of course, is great news for San Francisco. Coleman getting hot for the playoff only means the 49ers rush attack will be in full force for the NFC Championship game.

If Coleman and Mostert can maintain their levels of play, the 49ers may just advance to Super Bowl LIV.