In the most important game of the 49ers’ 2021 season, they wore out the Vikings in Week 12, winning 34-26 to bolster their playoff odds.
The San Francisco 49ers came into their crucial Week 12 matchup at Levi’s Stadium against the Minnesota Vikings riding high, having locked in two straight wins over the Los Angeles Rams and Jacksonville Jaguars in back-to-back weeks amid a return to the offensive quality they were accustomed to.
The bigger result of those two wins? A vault back into the playoff picture and a date with what was the current No. 5 seed in the NFC playoff picture in the then-5-5 Vikings.
For a Niners team that had struggled so much earlier in the year, Week 12 was as much of a must-win game as can exist this early in the regular season.
Well, on the backs of wide receiver Deebo Samuel, running back Elijah Mitchell, and timely defensive turnovers, San Francisco managed to walk away with a clutch 34-26 win in exciting (albeit stressful) fashion, solidifying their push to the playoffs and potentially setting their sights on stealing the fifth seed away from the Rams, who are only a game ahead of the 49ers after losing their Week 12 bout against the Green Bay Packers.
While there were some headaches and stress points, Niner Noise has your game grades ready for you from the playoff-like victory for head coach Kyle Shanahan and Co.
49ers Offense
The Niners offense came into this game with one goal: to grind the Vikings defense into submission.
When they got into that rhythm, it’s hard to argue they didn’t accomplish their goal, but there were a few cracks in what was overall a strong performance.
Especially early.
Quarterback: C+
Jimmy Garoppolo had a fairly efficient game, continuing his stretch of game-management play that has mixed in some high-level efforts. This game, though, was a little off from the exceptional play against the Rams and the rather strong performance against the Jaguars.
For starters, the interception he threw on the opening drive to Harrison Smith was indicative of one of Garoppolo’s biggest flaws as a quarterback: His inability to read underneath coverage. It looked remarkably similar to the NFC divisional game in 2019, where he threw an ugly interception to Eric Kendricks of the same Vikings.
Two years later, same flaw.
Additionally, Garoppolo missed a fair number of simple throws because he placed the ball either too high or too much on the inside on an out-breaking throw. Not a huge deal in the overall flow of the game, but plays that simply can’t be left on the field.
His general decisiveness mixed with a few quality strikes down the middle proved to be more than enough for a San Francisco offense that dominated on the ground.
Running Backs: A+
The 49ers’ intent to maul a depleted Vikings defensive front worked, and maul they did.
Elijah Mitchell carried the ball 27 times for a whopping 133 yards and a touchdown, sporting an excellent 4.9 yards per car as well, becoming the first rookie in franchise history to record four games of 100-plus yards rushing. Add on his five receptions for 35 yards, Kyle Juszczyk’s 37 yards receiving, and a general control over the game, and you got a position room that absolutely dominated.
Mitchell in particular manufactured yards where none were available and particularly dominated in a way partly reminiscent of 2019.
Wide Receivers: A
We are eventually going to have to consider whether Deebo Samuel should even be in the wide receiver position group. But 78 scrimmage yards with two touchdowns on only seven touches is elite production, no matter what position he’s at. Samuel’s ability to dominate outside running lanes, whether as a receiver or in the backfield, offers the Niners a bevy of options.
Hopefully, his groin injury isn’t too serious.
But Samuel wasn’t the only receiver who was productive. Brandon Aiyuk continues his ascent from Kyle Shanahan’s doghouse with a team-leading 91 yards receiving on three receptions, and Jauan Jennings caught a nifty touchdown and nearly had one more.
Add on quality blocking from the wideouts, and you have a great game.
Tight Ends: B+
It gets hard to “grade” San Francisco’s tight end group because this reliance on the run has significantly eaten away from the receiving options. The tight ends had three targets as a whole, which they hauled in two of for 24 yards.
But you can’t say they had a bad game given how impactful they have been on the ground, George Kittle in particular.
Especially Kittle’s epic response to Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer, who accused the 49ers of “holding on every single play.”
That alone is worth an A-plus grade.
In future weeks, you’d like the Niners to try and use their star tight end in the receiving game a little more, but they’re doing their job and doing it well as the team racks up wins.
Offensive Line: B-
Decent day for the offensive line, but certainly not the cleanest.
In the run game, the offensive line played quite well. But a couple penalties on Laken Tomlinson stand out prominently in a game that was not scrutinized by referees, and in pass protection, Garoppolo dealt with a couple sacks where the interior of the line was absolutely blown up.
Room to improve, but a decent day overall.
Total 49ers Grade: A
49ers Defense
San Francisco’s defense actually only gave up 20 points, which is certainly not great but is reasonable given the amount of offensive talent the Vikings have.
Add in some timely turnovers forced, and it was a good day for the defense, though some issues that must be addressed popped up.
Defensive Line: B
The 49ers had a rather pedestrian game in terms of pressure production. Nick Bosa, like always, had a great game, getting his 11th sack of the year and showing up in the backfield. The other members of the pass-rush unit were a little less noticeable, though, and Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins often had ample time to survey the field.
When the pressure got there, it was something fierce, and Cousins was notably uncomfortable both when dealing with the pressure and when having to escape the pocket.
The run defense, however, has to be commended. The Vikings ran the ball at a 3.7 yards-per-carry clip, a definite success. Kevin Givens forcing the fumble on Dalvin Cook by absolutely destroying the right guard was the most visible play of a quality effort up front.
Linebackers: B+
Perhaps the greatest sign for the Niners linebacking depth in particular was that both Dre Greenlaw and then Fred Warner had left the game due to ailments, and it wasn’t entirely clear that they had ever left. Azeez Al-Shaair’s athletic interception is a flashy play and a needed turnover, but the linebackers were more good than great this game.
Tackling wasn’t as solid as it had been in the last couple weeks, there were moments of definite over-pursuit, but they weren’t really targeted in the pass game and held up well overall.
Just some fine-tuning necessary.
Secondary: C
It was never a truly reasonable expectation to think San Francisco’s secondary would just shut down the Vikings passing game, and though there were some good moments, the secondary found itself in deep trouble more often than not.
The Vikings leveraged the 49ers’ preference to not travel corners across the formation to garner favorable matchups and exploited them. Both of wide receiver Adam Thielen’s touchdowns came on plays of that nature. Both touchdowns were also not on difficult plays. Josh Norman lost most of his battles against Justin Jefferson, though his forced fumble was a reminder of the explosive element he can bring to a football team.
All in all, the secondary survived the game with some scratches, but they never gave up a knockout punch.
Total 49ers Grade: B-
Special Teams: F
The 49ers had arguably their worst special teams game of the season, and they’re exceptionally lucky that it didn’t come back to haunt them.
Of course, it is hard to be worse than giving up a kick-return touchdown when momentum was entirely in the hands of your team, taking an 11-point lead only for it to be cut down to five without your defense getting to make a play.
If that wasn’t enough, Robbie Gould missed a field goal with two minutes to go that would have iced the game in its entirety, giving the Vikings one last breath of air.
The third phase of the game is often what makes the small difference necessary during the postseason, and while the Niners offense and defense is starting to round into form, special teams has a way to go.
Coaching: B
San Francisco came into this game like it has with their prior games, with a clear intent to run the Vikings into the ground.
Mission accomplished.
While the 49ers didn’t get to 40 rushing attempts in the game (they had 39), it was more than evident the ground-and-pound game was going to play a key role. And it worked.
There were a couple questionable play calls on the part of Kyle Shanahan on offense, and a couple moments where increased aggressiveness could have been rewarded, but you can’t really complain.
The Niners will play the Seattle Seahawks next week in a game that will have major ramifications in terms of tiebreakers, in case San Francisco reaches such a spot, and in any case, will be huge in showing this team has the fortitude necessary to take care of what has been a constant struggle for 49ers teams.