The 4 Best Vikings Performances from Win over 49ers
The Minnesota Vikings defeated the stacked San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, upending Kyle Shanahan’s team to the tune of a 23-17 victory.
The 4 Best Vikings Performances from Win over 49ers
Minnesota was expected to lose by four or five points, but for a second straight year in Minneapolis versus San Francisco, Kevin O’Connell’s team had other plans.
Along the way, these four players stood off the page, ranked in ascending order (No. 1 = best performance).
4. Garrett Bradbury (C)
Week 1 PFF Grade: 84.4
The Pro Football Focus tale of the tape from Bradbury:
Garrett Bradbury PFF,
vs. SF:
Overall Grade = 84.4
Run Blocking = 85.3
Pass Blocking = 78.2
Bradbury responded wonderfully following a woeful Week 1 matchup against New York Giants nose tackle Dexter Lawrence, who torments, well, everybody.
For a day, Bradbury was elite.
3. Blake Cashman (LB)
Week 1 PFF Grade: 80.9
The Eden Prairie native — in his first game at home as a member of the Vikings — accrued an interstellar 13 tackles, a tackle for loss, and a sack. The man existed all over the place on the field against San Francisco and is already a noticeable upgrade over Jordan Hicks, who departed for the Cleveland Browns in March. And Hicks played quite well in 2023; Cashman is simply better.
Cashman faces his old team, the Houston Texans, this weekend in his home state, Minnesota. Storybookish.
2. Patrick Jones II (OLB)
Week 1 PFF Grade: 88.6
Jones II played like a tyrant in Sunday’s win over the mighty San Francisco 49ers, chipping off two sacks and two tackles for loss and a mind-bogglingly productive 88.2 Pro Football Focus grade. He also ranks second in the NFL in sacks through two games, trailing only Aidan Hutchinson of the Detroit Lions.
When the 2024 campaign began last weekend, most Vikings fans narrowly focused on outside linebackers Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel, and Dallas Turner at the top of the ticket. But somehow, Jones II has bested them all through two games.
Whoodathunkit?
1. Justin Jefferson (WR)
Week 1 PFF Grade: 79.8
This highlight instantly grants any human the top spot on any list.
The play set the tone for the Vikings’ eventual win. Only a few wide receivers could finish this play in such fashion for a touchdown. Credit WR3 Jalen Nailor with the assist, as well.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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