2 weeks Ago
The Minnesota Vikings showed their resolve on Sunday with a wire-to-wire, 23-17 win over the San Francisco 49ers at U.S. Bank Stadium.
The win moves the Vikings to 2-0 for the first time since 2016 and pushes the Niners to 1-1. It also extended Minnesota's home winning streak against the 49ers to eight games, dating all the way back to Dec. 13, 1992.
It was big plays powering the Vikings early but it was a total team win. Related: Big plays propel Vikings to 13-7 halftime lead over 49ers The defense picked off Brock Purdy once and took away a fumble while holding one of the best offenses in the NFL for the majority of the game. That's despite the Niners having nearly a 10-minute edge in time of possession and running 13 more plays than Minnesota.
When things started to shift in San Francisco's favor late — an Aaron Jones fumble led to a 49ers touchdown that made it a six-point game early in the fourth — Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold led a 14-play, 62-yard drive that took 6:46 off the clock and got the Niners to use their timeouts. That drive, on which Darnold completed passes for three third-down conversions, led to a big field goal from Will Reichard to make it a nine-point game. Justin Jefferson also left with a quad injury near the end of the third quarter and never returned.
It wasn't immediately clear how severe that injury is, but his loss would obviously be a huge blow to the Vikings if he's forced to miss time, especially with fellow receivers Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson still sidelined.
The Vikings host Houston next weekend at noon. Related: Justin Jefferson leaves Vikings-49ers game with quad injury © Brad Rempel-Imagn Images.
