• Jordan Addison propels the Minnesota Vikings to victory: The Vikings spent the entire game with a lead, thanks to a career performance from the Vikings' first-round rookie.
• Christian McCaffrey was not stopped by his injury: McCaffrey was questionable with an oblique injury heading into the game, but he ended up playing 100% of his team’s offensive snaps for the second time this season.
• National Tight Ends Day extended by a day: T.J. Hockenson and George Kittle combined for 16 receptions for 164 yards after the league's top tight ends put up big numbers yesterday.
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San Francisco 49ers @ Minnesota Vikings
- Jordan Addison: 7 receptions, 124 yards, 2 touchdowns
- Christian McCaffrey: 15 carries, 45 yards, 1 touchdown; 3 receptions, 51 receiving yards, 1 receiving touchdown
The Vikings backfield becomes more of a committee: Alexander Mattison seemed to regain the workhorse role last week, receiving 25 opportunities to Cam Akers‘ two, but that changed for this game.
- Akers made his Vikings’ debut in Week 4, playing 14 snaps. That increased to 21 snaps in Week 5. He ran the ball five times and caught two passes in both games.
- Although he averaged 8.0 yards per carry in Week 5, he was relegated to nine snaps in Week 6 while Mattison played 45.
- Mattison started this game, playing 12 of the first 13 offensive snaps. From that point, Akers received more playing time than Mattison and ended the day with more rushing attempts.
- Mattison averaged more yards per carry, but a lot of Akers’ carries came in clear rushing situations in which the 49ers were clearly playing the run.
- Akers caught two passes for 30 yards, the third-best total of his career.
- The Vikings didn’t run much, even though they were playing with a lead. If anything, this should have been a game where Mattison rarely left the field.
- Akers has generally played a little better than Mattison since joining the Vikings, so there is a chance Akers will start to take more playing time in the coming weeks.
Jauan Jennings replaced Deebo Samuel: The 49ers All-Pro wide receiver missed this game with a hairline shoulder fracture.
- Ray-Ray McCloud III was expected to replace Samuel throughout the game. McCloud had taken over for Samuel in two-receiver sets last week and also played in two-receiver sets in place of Aiyuk earlier in the season.
- McCloud had played in 49 snaps in two-receiver sets over the first six weeks compared to 22 by Jennings.
- Instead, Jennings was the primary player in two-receiver sets tonight, with McCloud taking a few snaps from that set.
- Jennings had replaced Samuel in two-receiver sets from Week 15-17 last season.
- Jennings caught five passes for 56 yards, while McCloud was held without a target until the last minute of the game.
- The 49ers have a bye week next week, giving Samuel more time to recover. However, there is a chance Jennings could be fantasy-relevant if Samuel misses more time.
Miscellaneous Notes
- Typically, 49ers backup tight end Charlie Woerner sees roughly twice as many snaps as third-string tight end Ross Dwelley. Woerner played a lot more this week, partially because he was used in pass protection to make up for left tackle Trent Williams‘ absence.
- Vikings backup running back and primary kick returner Kene Nwangwu made his season debut after starting the season on injured reserve. He didn’t play on offense but took the kick return duties.
- Minnesota has opened the practice window for backup receiver Jalen Nailor, but he wasn’t activated for this game. He could earn playing time in three-receiver sets once he’s back.
- Both Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson left the game with injuries in the second half, but both were able to return to the game.
- Last week, Trishton Jackson served as the Vikings' fourth wide receiver, primarily playing in one-receiver sets, typically running situations. N’Keal Harry played in the one-receiver sets this week, but Jackson played when Addison was out.
Table Notes
• Snaps include plays called back due to penalties, including offensive holding or defensive pass interference. The other three stats have these plays removed.
• Targets may differ from official NFL sources. The most likely discrepancy would be from a clear thrown-away pass, where the NFL may give the target to the nearest receiver, while this data will not.
• Carries are only on designed plays. Quarterback scrambles won’t count for the total number of carries in the game.
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