Click HERE if you’re having trouble viewing the gallery or video on your mobile device. Get 49ers news in your inbox. Sign up now for the free 49ers HQ newsletter. MINNEAPOLIS — Jimmy Garoppolo’s air of invincibility is over. His career, like his name, now has exactly one “L.” The Minnesota Vikings ripped the Superman logo off his chest and stomped on it Sunday in their season-opening 24-16 victory at U.S. Bank Stadium. The previously undefeated quarterback threw three interceptions, including a ghastly late-game floater that ended the 49ers’ final hope. Hardly content to sack Garoppolo three times, the Vikings also hit him one more time with a locker room quote. “As the game goes on, you have to bring the pressure on him. You see that he’s starting to get scared,” defensive end Danielle Hunter said. Scared? Jimmy G? He may have come over in a Halloween trade, but it was all sunshine and rainbows after that. Garoppolo went 5-0 while throwing for 1,542 yards last season. So it was almost surreal Sunday to see Garoppolo struggle in the red zone. Or to watch him overshoot tight end George Kittle on a sure touchdown pass. Or for him to finish with a 45.1 passer rating. Or for him to lose. “It sucks,” Garoppolo said upon discovery. But then he nodded his head in the direction of the 49ers locker room. “We have a good group in there,” the quarterback continued. “We have the right mindset of watching the film, bouncing back and being ready for next week.” This was uncharted territory for Garoppolo, having to answer questions about errant throws and wasted opportunities. So this was also the first chance to see what ticked off Jimmy G looked like. As it turns out, he looked a lot like happy Jimmy G. The quarterback praised coach Kyle Shanahan’s play-calling, gave a shoutout to the injury-ravaged offensive line and praised receiver Dante Pettis for doing all the work on the 49ers’ lone touchdown, a 22-yarder in the back left corner of the end zone. That cut the score to 24-13 late in the third quarter. “I thought Dante played great the whole day,” Garoppolo said of the rookie. “On (the TD), it was kind of a broken play, but Dante found the open area and he is a smart athlete. He goes to where the ball takes him and made a tremendous catch on it.” In all Garoppolo went 15 for 33 for 261 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions. Tellingly, what he did not mention after his rough day was how many things went wrong beyond his control. Already playing one of the league’s top defenses, the 49ers lost starting right guard Mike Person to a foot injury in the second quarter. Person’s replacement, Joshua Garnett, then suffered the same fate at the start of the third quarter. That left rookie right tackle Mike McGlinchey sliding over to play guard, with Garry Gilliam — who missed most of the past month with a concussion — jumping in for emergency duty at tackle. That’s hardly ideal against a team that led the NFL in total defense last season. Instead of using the O-line shuffle as an excuse, Garoppolo used it as a platform to salute the 49ers’ first-round pick. “I give Mike credit,” the quarterback said. “I don’t know if he’s ever played guard before, and we had to put him in there. His first NFL game having to play tackle and guard? That’s a hell of a first game.” Garoppolo also did not mention that one of his prettiest passes of the day, a long launch to Kittle along the left sideline, bounced off the tight end’s hands. At the time, the 49ers trailed only 10-3 and the big-gainer would have put them in position to tie. Instead, on the next play after Kittle’s drop, Vikings rookie Mike Hughes cut in front of receiver Kendrick Bourne and returned an easy interception for a 28-yard touchdown. Shanahan indicated strongly that the problem on that play had little to do with the quarterback, saying that there was miscommunication both in terms of the blocking schemes and the receiver’s route. Going back even further: With Kittle’s drop, maybe it doesn’t happen at all. “That leads to a pick six. That’s on my shoulders,” the tight end said. “It’s a play we hit all the time, so I am pretty disappointed in myself.” Garoppolo made his own errors, too — a few Jimmy ‘E’s.’ Most painfully, on a third-and-goal from the 4 midway through the first quarter, Kittle sprang free all alone as he crossed the back line of the end zone. Garoppolo spotted him but launched the ball over Kittle’s head. A reporter later asked if Kittle had any shot at bringing the ball down. “I can’t jump 40 inches at 250 (pounds). That’s hard for me,” Kittle cracked. “But no, it was a high ball. If I was 10 pounds lighter, maybe.” Garoppolo was disappointed at the misfire, but took solace in the fact that they seemed to have the right answers for the Vikings defense. The guy can put a pretty face on anything. “When (Shanahan) puts us in good situations like that, we have to make the easy completion and easy catches,” he said. “All that stuff.” The 49ers offense should have a little more breathing room in Week 2. They’ll be at home against a Detroit team coming off a short week. (The Lions play the Jets on Monday night). In contrast to the Vikings ferocious unit, Detroit finished 27th last season in total defense. Related Articles Inside the 49ers: Kittle’s comeback, Shanahan’s doodling, Warner’s extension, Garoppolo’s radio wars 49ers’ Garoppolo looks healthy while sharing field with ‘cool dude’ Lance Five things to watch as 49ers launch organized team activities Jimmy Garoppolo, George Kittle among 49ers’ massive contingent at offseason program Garoppolo breaks his offseason silence, welcomes Lance into 49ers’ QB room So this is when we find out about Garoppolo’s ability to rebound. And even after getting smacked around Sunday, he didn’t sound scared. “Every person in our locker room has a great mindset of what we need to do,” Garoppolo said. “It’s a long season, so you can’t let one week bounce into the next. After we watch the film, we need to move on.”<doc-sep>The San Francisco 49ers went into Minnesota as everyone's favorite playoff sleeper with the NFL's newest superstar quarterback. They left Minnesota as the latest casualty of the Vikings' Super Bowl-worthy defense with a quarterback who might have an interception problem. On Sunday, the Vikings doused the 49ers' playoff buzz with a 24-16 win. New Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins did his part, throwing two touchdowns, and then the defense did the rest, slowing down the Garoppolo hype train with three interceptions, including one pick-six. The beginning of the game was all about Cousins. After the two teams opened the game by exchanging punts, the Vikings got the scoring started with a field goal. On their next series, the Vikings extended their lead to 10-0 when Cousins dropped in a dime to Stefon Diggs deep down the left sideline. The 49ers finally got on the board with a field goal. Then, after forcing a Dalvin Cook fumble, they drove downfield to the goal line, but just when it looked like they'd tie the game, the Vikings' defense came up huge with a takeaway. Still, at halftime, the Vikings only led 10-3. For a half, the 49ers hung tough against one of the Super Bowl frontrunners. Things unraveled in the third quarter. After 49ers tight end George Kittle dropped what likely would've been an 80-yard touchdown, Garoppolo handed the Vikings a free touchdown on the very next play. That's Vikings first-round pick Mike Hughes checking in with his first career pick-six. The 49ers settled for a field goal on their next red-zone series, cutting the lead to 11 points. Cousins didn't settle. He responded with his second touchdown, this one an equally perfect strike to tight end Kyle Rudolph. The 49ers would respond with a touchdown when Garoppolo made a spectacular spinning throw to Dante Pettis. When their defense forced a punt, hope lingered. It didn't last long. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, Garoppolo threw another pick, this time to Xavier Rhodes, who made an incredible catch to secure the errant pass. It was a theme of the day. The 49ers, at times, could move the ball. But their failure to come up with big plays doomed them. After Garoppolo's second interception, the 49ers forced a punt and Garoppolo drove them right back down to the red zone. But on third-and-goal, he sailed a throw to an open Kittle and the 49ers had to settle for another field goal. The 49ers got the ball back two more times with a chance to tie the game, but their comeback ended with Garoppolo's third and final interception. It was that kind of game for the 49ers. A game that was there to steal, because the Vikings let them hang around, but a game that indicates they have some issues to sort out before they can be considered a contender in the NFC. On the other hand, losing to a team like the Vikings in Minnesota isn't a huge deal. Isn't that what was supposed to happen? The 49ers aren't suddenly a bad team because they lost to the Vikings -- a legitimate Super Bowl contender -- by eight points in Minnesota. Sunday's game was just a reminder that the 49ers probably aren't fully there yet. It's a reminder that Jimmy Garoppolo isn't Tom Brady reincarnated. The 49ers have flaws. Garoppolo was one of them on Sunday. From the Vikings' perspective, they've got their own issues to sort out -- namely, their offensive line. But as long as their defense remains as dominant as it was, they'll be able to beat anyone. And now, they've got Cousins under center, which gives them the ability to put up points in a hurry if the situation calls for it. Speaking of Cousins ... Cousins passes first test behind shaky offensive line Cousins, the biggest free agent quarterback signing since the Broncos landed Peyton Manning, looked the part in his Vikings debut. Behind a shaky offensive line that will likely remain the team's biggest issue (three sacks), he completed 20 of 36 passes for 244 yards, two touchdowns, no picks and a 95.1 passer rating. He made two spectacular throws for two touchdowns, but beyond that, he didn't necessarily wow anyone. But that's OK. Because what Cousins did was avoid backbreaking mistakes -- like the ones that plagued Garoppolo. He's playing with arguably the game's best defense. What he needs to do is avoid turnovers, and play steady and consistent football, which is what he did on Sunday. Cousins is never going to be Aaron Rodgers or Tom Brady, but so long as he's taking care of the ball, making a few big-time throws, and staying out of his defense's way, he'll be just fine. That version of Cousins makes the Vikings one of the best teams in the NFC. Garoppolo's turnovers kill 49ers The winning streak is over. Jimmy Garoppolo has been defeated. It was a strange day for Garoppolo. He ended up going 15 of 33 for 261 yards, one touchdown, three picks, and a 45.1 passer rating. At times, he looked like the superstar of last season. His touchdown pass to Pettis was magic. These are the throws that most quarterbacks -- like Cousins -- don't often make. But he made far too many mistakes against a defense that knows how to punish mistakes. These are the throws that Cousins avoided. Overreacting to Week 1 performances is just as bad as overreacting to a five-game winning streak that came against inferior competition, but Garoppolo's interceptions might be a problem to worry about. He threw five picks in six appearances last season. According to Football Outsiders, Garoppolo also had "three dropped interceptions for a total of eight adjusted interceptions, a rate of 4.3 percent that would have ranked right behind Siemian, Palmer, and Gabbert among the highest in that category" last season. The Vikings didn't drop them on Sunday. It is worth noting that Garoppolo put his receivers in a position to bring in three touchdowns, but they couldn't come down with catches NFL-caliber players are expected to make. Blaming him alone for the loss would be an overreaction. But there's room for Garoppolo and the 49ers to improve -- specifically in the red zone, where the 49ers went 1 of 4. About that Vikings defense The game turned in the second quarter when the 49ers saw a 14-play, 69-yard drive end with a fumble at the goal-line. If the 49ers had managed to punch the ball in, they would've tied the game at 10-10. Instead, the Vikings' two safeties combined to take the ball away. Harrison Smith, by the way, finished with a team-high eight tackles, two tackles for a loss, one sack, one fumble recovery, and one interception. As a team, the Vikings' defense snagged three picks, four total takeaways, and three sacks. That'll work. DeForest Buckner breaks out Buckner, the seventh-overall pick in 2016, has been an underrated player to this point in his career because of his low sack total (nine in two years), but he broke out on Sunday. Taking advantage of a bad offensive line, Buckner racked up 2.5 sacks. The 49ers might've lost, but they've got a stud pass rusher who appears to be ready to explode. Dalvin Cook looks explosive Before an ACL tear ruined his rookie season, Dalvin Cook flashed loads of potential, giving the Vikings hope that they'd found a worthy Adrian Peterson successor. During the offseason, the Vikings talked about Cook's recovery as if it wouldn't even be a factor during the coming season. Well, on Sunday, the season came and so did Cook. Cook looked just as explosive as he did a year ago. They started the game by giving him four consecutive touches. There was a quick swing pass that netted nine yards. Then he picked up a short-yardage first down. On the next play, he bounced a carry to the outside for another first down. It wasn't all great. His fumble in the second quarter, when he got caught from behind after an impressive run, nearly set up the 49ers for a touchdown before the Vikings' defense struck back with a fumble recovery of their own.<doc-sep>In my game preview on Thursday, I predicted that the Vikings would struggle at times on offense but ride their incredibly talented defense to a 24-13 victory over the 49ers. I thought we might see a few hiccups from Kirk Cousins & company working out the kinks, but their day wouldn’t be nearly as rough as Jimmy Garoppolo and the up-and-coming-but-not-quite-there-yet 49ers. I was way off. They won 24-16. But hey, the rest of the stuff was basically right! (Please ignore me getting knocked out of the Survivor Pool in Week 1 for the second straight year later in the article.) It wasn’t always pretty, but the Vikings were able to take care of business and win their home opener on Sunday. Let’s take our weekly look back at the five biggest plays that helped decide the game. Play 1: Vikings ball, 3rd & 3 at the San Francisco 22. Second quarter, 13:44 remaining. (Shotgun) K.Cousins pass deep left to S. Diggs for 22 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Throws like this are why the Vikings paid Kirk Cousins all that money. The Vikings offense made it inside the San Francisco 40 on each of their two drives but were only able to muster three points from it. On their third drive, Cousins came through with a picture-perfect toss to Stefon Diggs on third down for his first touchdown as a Viking. Cousins wasn’t this accurate as often as we may have hoped for throughout the game, but this one was a thing of beauty. Play 2: 49ers ball, 2nd & goal at the Minnesota 1. Second quarter, 2:34 remaining. A.Morris up the middle to MIN 1 for no gain (L. Joseph ). FUMBLES (L.Joseph), RECOVERED by MIN-H. Smith at MIN 2. H. Smith to MIN 2 for no gain (P.Garcon). San Francisco was three feet away from tying the game late in the second quarter. On the first & goal play before this, Alfred Morris was very fortunate to recover his own fumble after Eric Kendricks knocked it out. Fortunately for the Vikings, Morris didn’t learn from his mistake. Andrew Sendejo made the initial contact, Linval Joseph poked the ball out, and Harrison Smith recovered at the 2 to keep the lead going into halftime. It was a huge play that featured some great defensive teamwork from Minnesota. If the 49ers scored there and it was tied at the half, this game may have unfolded much differently. Play 3: 49ers ball, 3rd & 8 at the San Francisco 20. Third quarter, 10:48 remaining. (Shotgun) J. Garoppolo pass short right intended for K.Bourne INTERCEPTED by M. Hughes at SF 28. M.Hughes for 28 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Pretty decent way to make your NFL debut. With Mackensie Alexander sidelined, rookie corner Mike Hughes played 52 of 66 defensive snaps and acquitted himself quite nicely. He allowed three receptions on six targets for 59 yards according to Pro Football Focus. While this pick six was more being in the right place at the right time than shutdown coverage, Hughes showed why the Vikings thought so highly of him in the draft. Alexander might have to be worried about getting his job back after he recovers from injury. Play 4: Vikings ball, 2nd & goal at the San Francisco 11. Third quarter, 4:27 remaining. (Shotgun) K.Cousins pass short right to K. Rudolph for 11 yards, TOUCHDOWN. After the pick six, the Vikings had a chance to put the game away on their following drive with a 17-6 score. That’s just what they did. Adam Thielen had a big 34-yard reception on third down that put the Vikings in San Francisco territory. Cousins found David Morgan in a very tight window to keep the sticks moving and make it first & goal. Two plays later, we welcomed an old friend back into our lives: Rudolph the Red Zone Reindeer. It was another gorgeous touch pass from Cousins for what would turn out to be the only reception of the day for Kyle Rudolph. Cousins and the Vikings offense as a whole had a rather up-and-down day overall. But man, were some of those “ups” way up there. The potential to be a very potent offense showed on plays like this. Play 5: 49ers ball, 3rd & goal at the Minnesota 4. Fourth quarter, 8:18 remaining. (Shotgun) J.Garoppolo pass incomplete short middle to G. Kittle . San Francisco was once again knocking on the door late in an 11-point game. Once again, they couldn’t get out of their own way. George Kittle had a very good game overall, catching five passes for 90 yards and giving the Minnesota defense fits much of the day. He also had two very crucial passes go through his hands. This one wasn’t all his fault since Garoppolo sailed it a bit. It made the 49ers settle for a field goal. The other was definitely Kittle’s fault, and it negated what would have been a huge gain on the play before the Hughes pick six. If he holds onto either pass, the 49ers would have had a much better chance to pull off the upset. As always, we welcome you to vote in the poll to tell us which play you thought was the biggest and encourage you to suggest any we may have missed in the comments. The Vikings are still a bit of a work in progress early in the season, but a 1-0 work in progress certainly beats the alternative.<doc-sep>
Mike Hughes talked before his NFL debut Sunday about scoring a touchdown on a kickoff return. He settled for touchdown on an interception. The rookie cornerback broke the game open with a 28-yard return for a TD early in the third quarter, and that propelled the Vikings to a 24-16 victory over the San Francisco 49ers in the opener at U.S. Bank Stadium. Hughes’ touchdown put the Vikings up 17-3. They increased the lead to 24-6 late in the third quarter before the 49ers made it interesting by scoring the game’s final 10 points. Harrison Smith wrapped things up for the Vikings with 1:35 left, intercepting a Jimmy Garoppolo pass and returned it 14 yards to the San Francisco 15. The vaunted Vikings defense forced four turnovers, a fumble and three interceptions of Garoppolo. The big one came from Hughes, who was playing left outside cornerback after practicing all week at nickel back. He moved to the outside in the second half after Trae Waynes injured his knee, and safety Jayron Kearse took over the nickel role. “I give a lot of credit to the defensive line,” Hughes said of the pick-six. “They got good pressure and forced Garoppolo to throw a bad ball.” Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins throws a pass during the first half of an NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers, Sunday, Sept. 9, 2018, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jim Mone) The turnovers took pressure off Minnesota’s offense, which did enough for coach Mike Zimmer to improve his record in openers to 4-1. In his Vikings debut, quarterback Kirk Cousins completed 20 of 36 passes for 244 yards and two touchdowns. Receiver Adam Thielen caught six passes for 102 yards. And running back Dalvin Cook, playing his first regular-season game since his ACL injury last October, had 16 carries for 40 yards and six receptions for 55 yards. “Obviously, when you have a defense like ours, it takes a lot of anxiety away from the offense, so we know we can just go out there and be ourselves and play football,” Thielen said. “We know they’re going to create turnovers.” The Vikings had just one turnover, a second-quarter fumble by Cook. Without a plus-three turnover margin, the game might have turned out differently. “Takeaways are always huge,” linebacker Anthony Barr said. “It was a point of emphasis for us all offseason, and we were able to do that.” The first takeaway came with the Vikings leading 10-3 and the 49ers facing second-and-goal at the 1 late in the second quarter. Nose tackle Linval Joseph hit running back Alfred Morris, the ball popped loose, and Smith recovered. Hughes’ interception was the next one. The Vikings added two more interceptions of Garoppolo in the fourth quarter, by Rhodes and Smith. The Vikings pressured Garoppolo throughout the game, sacking him three times. “Their quarterback definitely feels that whether they like to admit it or not,” Barr said. “Any time you get guys in your face, it affects you.” As the pressure on Garoppolo mounted, Minnesota defensive end Danielle Hunter said he was “starting to get scared.” After the game, Garoppolo did at least acknowledge the Vikings “are a talented group” and the 49ers knew it would be “a tough challenge.” Cousins also was sacked three times. The Vikings have had their share of offensive line issues, with guard Nick Easton out for the season, and with Brett Jones, acquired two weeks ago from the New York Giants, filling in at center Sunday for injured Pat Elfein. But Cousins was able to buy time with some bootlegs. “I thought he played well,” Zimmer said of his new quarterback. “Especially early, he made some good throws. The two touchdown passes were great throws.” Related Articles Vikings’ Dalvin Cook prepares for 17-game grind with offseason body of work DE Danielle Hunter among five Vikings absent Wednesday from OTAs Anthony Barr took pay cut so 2020 injury wouldn’t be his ‘last memory’ with Vikings Vikings linebackers Anthony Barr, Cameron Smith finally back on the field for OTAs Vikings claim center Cohl Cabral off waivers from Texans Cousins hit Stefon Diggs with a 22-yard TD pass early in the second quarter for a 10-0 lead. He put the Vikings up 24-6 on an 11-yard throw to Kyle Rudolph late in the third quarter, and then ran into the end zone to celebrate with the tight end.