49ers defense failed to find answers in Monday night loss to Vikings

The 49ers couldn't get pressure on Kirk Cousins, had trouble against the run and gave up too much up the middle on Monday night versus the Vikings.

San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Steve Wilks is probably going to hear it a little bit more over the next few days.

The Niners now have dropped two games in a row, this time falling 22-17 to the sub-.500 Minnesota Vikings on Monday Night Football in a game where quarterback Kirk Cousins had little trouble carving up Wilks' defense despite not having his best offensive weapon in All-Pro wide receiver Justin Jefferson.

With Jefferson shelved on injured reserve with an injury, Cousins simply distributed passes to tight end T.J. Hockenson and wide receiver Jordan Addison to beat San Francisco.

Oh, and negating the 49ers' vaunted pass rush was a massive part of the equation, too. Edge Nick Bosa and Co. recorded zero sacks on Cousins over the course of the game. Giving up a whopping 453 net yards of offense to the Vikings was ugly, too, as was Minnesota going 8-of-13 on third down.

Wilks had his share of mistakes, too, including a 0-blitz on that infamous 60-yard touchdown by Addison just before halftime. On a 3rd-and-17 play with time running out, that kind of pressure wasn't needed:

At all.

A different outcome from that play could have been the difference. But, just like the 49ers' Week 6 road loss at the Cleveland Browns, a culmination of poor plays and mistakes ultimately led to the frustrating defeat.

Including more woes from kicker Jake Moody.

Jake Moody struggles again, misses 1 of his 2 field-goal tries

Wilks might be hearing from fans and reporters this week, but Moody will hear it even louder. Especially after missing two of his three attempts in Cleveland, including what could have been the game-winner.

Moody missed his first try from 40 yards out, which led to a whiff rate of 75 percent on his last four tries.

Not good from the 2023 third-round NFL Draft pick.

A successful field goal from 55 yards out helped alleviate some of the woes, but the Niners didn't draft Moody to have a 50-percent conversion rate.

Christian McCaffrey continues TD-scoring streak with 2 scores

Minnesota largely frustrated San Francisco's ground game over the course of all four quarters, which influenced running back Christian McCaffrey having just 45 yards on the ground and averaging a mere 3.0 yards per attempt.

Not having left tackle Trent Williams (ankle) and wide receiver Deebo Samuel (shoulder) to assist played a role, surely.

That said, McCaffrey found the end zone twice, the first score ensuring that his ongoing touchdown-scoring streak would continue, and it's now up to 16 consecutive games.

McCaffrey also had this nifty 35-yard receiving touchdown, too:

Related story: Christian McCaffrey has 16 straight games with a TD, inches closer to NFL record

Brock Purdy bounces back from rough Week 6 game... sort of

Quarterback Brock Purdy was one of the key reasons why the 49ers lost Week 6 game in Cleveland. No questions there.

But Purdy managed to bounce back well enough in Minnesota, and he certainly wasn't the reason why the 49ers fell to 5-2 on the game.

Except those two late fourth-quarter interceptions situations where the Niners could have taken the lead?

Well, those were brutal. Devastating.

Purdy's night was 21-of-30 for 272 yards with a touchdown and the two picks, all for a passer rating of 81.5.

He didn't cost San Francisco the game, per se, but he also failed to deliver in one of those clutch moments in the fourth quarter where the league's elite step up big.

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