This is the live blog for the 49ers Week 1 road game against the Minnesota Vikings. I will update this frequently with information and analysis from my living room. Here are the 49ers inactive players: LB Malcolm Smith WR Richie James Jr. OL Erik Magnuson OL Matt Tobin OL Shon Coleman DT Jullian Taylor Here is my pregame report: 49ers pregame report https://t.co/A0v6P26qgg — Grant Cohn (@grantcohn) September 9, 2018 10:12 The Vikings punt three plays after DeForest Buckner sacks Kirk Cousins. Great series for Buckner. 10:16 On third-and-7 from the 49ers 23, Garoppolo throws to George Kittle, who is triple covered. Incomplete. The 49ers punt. The Vikings will take over from their 30-yard line. 10:18 Bad first series for the 49ers offense. The Vikings seemed to know where the ball was going every play. 10:23 On third-and-6 from the 49ers 30, Cousins throws a short pass over the middle to No. 3 wide receiver Laquon Treadwell, who drops the ball. Rookie kicker Daniel Carlson makes a 48-yard field goal, and the Vikings lead 3-0. 10:24 The 49ers defense has held Dalvin Cook to just seven yards on nine carries. Fred Warner has been terrific — he tackled Cook for a two-yard loss during this past series. 10:25 The pass coverage has been an issue, though. K’Waun Williams, Richard Sherman and Fred Warner each have given up big gains. 10:31 On the first play of the drive, Laken Tomlinson commits a holding penalty. Next play, Sheldon Richardson bulldozes Mike Person and hits Jimmy Garoppolo, who stumbles and gets sacked by Everson Griffen. The 49ers punt a few plays later. Terrible start for the offense. Completely disjointed and out of sync. 10:39 On third-and-3 form the 49ers 46, Robert Saleh calls a blitz and Vikings offensive coordinator John DeFelippo beats the blitz with a screen pass to Cook, who gains 17 yards. 10:40 On third-and-3 from the 49ers 22, Ahkello Witherspoon gives up a touchdown pass to Stefon Diggs, who ran a go route up. Witherspoon covered him man to man and never turned his head to find the ball. Easy touchdown. The Vikings lead 10-0. 10:41 The 49ers defense is struggling on third down. The Vikings have converted 60 percent of the time. 10:45 On the third series, Kyle Shanahan makes two adjustments — he goes with a hurry-up offense, and he calls play-action roll-out passes. He calls that concept three times in a row to start the drive. The result is two first downs. He found a way to attack the Vikings base defense on first down, which is critical to beating Minnesota. Good job by Shanahan. 10:46 On the third play of the drive. Marquise Goodwin ran into a defender and appeared to injure his right leg. 10:50 Goodwin’s injury ruins the drive. Dante Pettis replaces him and draws a 15-yard penalty. But after that, the 49ers go nowhere. Robbie Gould makes a 42-yard field goal to make the score 10-3 Vikings. 10:51 Losing Goodwin after already losing McKinnon would be devastating. 10:56 Cook bursts through the 49ers defense for a big gain, but Warner catches him, strips him and Richard Sherman recovers. Wow! 10:59 On third-and-1 from the Vikings 47, tight end Garrett Celek commits a false start and Mike Person injures his right leg. Joshua Garnett will replace him. 11:00 Goodwin is questionable to return with a quad injury. 11:11 On second-and-goal from the 1, Alfred Morris runs into the line, fumbles and the Vikings recover. Morris fumbled on the previous play, but got the ball back. 11:12 What a bad break. The Vikings had given the 49ers a gift, and Jimmy Garoppolo had just led a brilliant 14-play drive. 11:13 The 49ers red-zone offense remains an issue. 11:23 On the final play of the first half, the Vikings attempt a Hail Mary from the 49ers 44, and Buckner sacks Cousins for a loss of nine. The 49ers will get the ball when the third quarter starts. 11:37 The third quarter will start any minute, and Goodwin still is sitting on a stationary bike. 11:41 On the second play of the drive, backup right guard Joshua Garnett injures his left leg. He can’t walk off the field by himself. Looks bad. The 49ers will have to play backup tackle Garry Gilliam at right guard. This is exactly why the 49ers should have drafted a guard this year. 11:43 On third-and-9, Garoppolo throws incomplete over the middle to Trent Taylor, and the 49ers go three-and-out. 11:47 On third-and-12 from the Vikings 42, the 49ers get a coverage sack. Cousins scrambles around with no one to throw to, and runs into Buckner and Ronald Blair. Big series for the defense. 11:48 Dante Pettis fumbles the punt, but Witherspoon recovers the ball at the 49ers 18. 11:51 Garry Gilliam is playing right tackle and Mike McGlinchey is playing right guard. 11:51 On second-and-8, George Kittle drops a deep pass. He was wide open. He dropped passes last season, too. 11:52 Next play, Garoppolo throws a pick-six. The Vikings blitzed, he threw off his back foot while spinning away from a hit and threw the ball directly to rookie cornerback Mike Hughes. The Vikings lead 17-3. Terrible decision by Garoppolo. 11:58 On the first play of the drive, Garoppolo throws a 56-yard pass to Kyle Juszczcyk, who was wide open. Brilliant play design by Shanahan in the middle of the field. 11:59, In the red zone, Shanahan’s play design fails the 49ers again. On third-and-6 from the 15, Garoppolo throws an incomplete pass to Garcon, and the 49ers kick a field goal. They trail 17-6. 12:08 On second-and-goal from the 11, Jaquiski Tartt gives up a touchdown catch to tight end Kyle Rudolph. Tartt was in man-to-man coverage and never turned his head to find the football. The Vikings lead 24-6. 12:17 On second-and-goal from the 22, Garoppolo scrambles to his left and flicks a touchdown pass to Dante Pettis. Beautiful throw. Fantastic catch. Good job by Pettis adjusting his route and running deep when Garoppolo started scrambling. The 49ers trail 24-13 with 31 seconds left in the third quarter.<doc-sep>As we head to the final stanza, the Vikings lead 24-13. Minnesota scored twice in the third quarter, as Mike Hughes had his first touchdown and interception on the same play. Kyle Rudolph, who was the third TE to catch a pass today, hauled in a Kirk Cousins pass. At 24-6, the Vikes really seemed to be in control, until Garoppolo and the 49ers came marching back down the field to close within 24-13 on a ridiculous 22 yard throw to Dante Pettis. Minnesota faces a long third down in their territory to open the quarter.<doc-sep>The San Francisco 49ers will be without Dekoda Watson and Reuben Foster, and likely Malcolm Smith, but they face a Minnesota Vikings team that will be shorthanded as well in Week 1. The Vikings’ offensive line has been ravaged by injuries, and they confirmed on Friday that center Pat Elflein will not play. He was ruled out with ankle and shoulder issues, and Brett Jones will start n his place. They will also be short-handed in tackle depth, with reserve Aviante Collins also ruled out. On defense, their secondary will be missing nickel back Mackensie Alexander. That means rookie Mike Hughes will get the nod, according to Daily Norseman. Xavier Rhodes is listed as questionable, and was a full participant in Friday’s practice. He starts opposite Trae Waynes, and if he can’t go, Hughes, Marcus Sherels, and Holton Hill would all find themselves with even more playing time. The 49ers have a tough road ahead of them, but the Vikings offensive line injuries in particular could provide an opening. The team already lost Nick Easton during training camp, replaced by Tom Compton at left guard. Brett Jones has 12 career starts at center dating back to 2015. The interior of the Vikings offensive line is where the 49ers can potentially find an advantage. The key on defense for the 49ers will be the defensive tackles, particularly on passing downs. If they don’t take advantage of this situation, it could be a long day. Out: Aviante Collins, T (elbow), Pat Elflein, C (ankle/shoulder), Roc Thomas, RB (ankle) Doubtful/Out: Mackensie Alexander, CB (ankle) Questionable: Xavier Rhodes, CB (hamstring)<doc-sep>The long awaited start of the Vikings regular season is just a few days away, and expectations are high going into the Vikings first home game against the 49ers. Here’s a few matchups I’m looking at: CAN THE VIKINGS RUN ON THE 49ERS DEFENSE? It will be interesting to see how the Vikings offense line fares on Sunday, with Brett Jones at center and Tom Compton at left guard, in addition to Reiff at left tackle, Remmers at right guard and Rashod Hill at right tackle. The 49ers have DeForest Buckner on their defensive line, but even his run defense wasn’t that great last season, and everybody else along the 49ers DL was worse. Beyond that, the 49ers will be starting a couple unproven linebackers - including rookie 3rd round pick Fred Warner. Malcolm Smith missed all of last season, and hasn’t fared well in the three seasons prior to that. Smith was also limited in practice yesterday with a hamstring issue. The 49ers top LB - Reuben Foster - will be out serving a suspension. Expect the Vikings to test the 9ers’ LBs early and often with both run and pass, which could lead to big games for Dalvin Cook and Latavius Murray. HOW GOOD IS RICHARD SHERMAN THESE DAYS? It will be interesting if Kirk Cousins throws much into Sherman’s coverage. Sherman has been a shut-down corner for a long time, but started showing his age last season before he suffered an Achilles injury that sidelined him the rest of the season in Seattle. Now with the 9ers, and with just 34 snaps in preseason, how well will he play? WELCOME TO THE NFL MIKE MCGLINCHEY On offense, the 49ers will be starting rookie first-round pick Mike McGlinchey at right-tackle. He was mediocre in preseason, and will be facing off against Danielle Hunter, who may give him a rather rude welcome to the NFL. JIMMY G VS. MIKE Z Jimmy Garoppolo has been in the league for several years now, but still has just over a handful of games under his belt. Look for Mike Zimmer and the Vikings defense to throw a lot of different looks at him, with lots of pre-snap movement to get in his head. And if the 9ers aren’t able to put together an effective ground game without Jerick McKinnon, it could be a long and painful outing for Jimmy G, who can throw the occasional INT. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the return of the double-A gap blitz look against the 49ers’ interior OL and Jimmy G, among other things. Sheldon Richardson had his best game (largely due to run defense) last season at the 49ers week 12. The 49ers OL outside of Joe Staley at LT (who is a stud), will be tested against the Vikings DL. SPECIAL TEAMS With all the issues the Vikings had in preseason on special teams, combined with the new specialists and returners, it will be interesting to see how the Vikings fare on special teams. I’m hoping for a mistake-free game on special teams, but with a new punter, kicker, holder, returner, special teams players, and new rules, anything could happen. Hopefully it will be uneventful. BOTTOM LINE The 49ers had a lot planned for Jerick McKinnon in their offense this year, so losing him for the season with an ACL tear was a big blow. Losing MLB Reuben Foster to suspension for two games will hurt too. Still, Jimmy G looks like the real deal and he’s got a couple good receivers to throw to in Pierre Garcon and Marquise Goodwin. But Mike Zimmer and the Vikings defense in the roar of the crowd at US Bank stadium isn’t about to let a young QB steal the show, especially absent a decent ground game. I’m looking for a dominant defensive performance from the Vikings to start the season, with an impressive ground game making things easier for Kirk Cousins in his debut as a Viking, and a comfortable Vikings win. 27-13.<doc-sep>
The Minnesota Vikings kicked off their 2018 campaign on Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium versus the San Francisco 49ers with a 24-16 victory, in a game marked with big plays. The Vikings defense came out strong in the first quarter, holding the 49ers to just 13 yards on 8 offensive plays. The Vikings offense was like a classic car coming out of storage after a long winter - chugging, sputtering, revving up and sounding mean, then popping and clanking through most of the first quarter, and rookie Daniel Carlson’s 48 yard field goal was the only scoring. Early in the second quarter, the offense began to find its rhythm and after Cousins and company took advantage of a short field, ending a six play, 53 yard drive with Cousins dropping an absolutely beautiful pass into the arms of Stefon Diggs to give the Vikings a 10-3 lead. Later in the quarter, Niners rookie linebacker Fred Warner punched the ball out of Dalvin Cook’s grip. San Francisco recovered the fumble, and began a 14 play, 69 yard drive. Once the 49ers had the ball inside the 5 yard line, the Vikings defense took their play to another level. Alfred Morris was held to just two yards on four carries on a beautiful goal line stand, before Linval Joseph ripped the ball loose and Harrison Smith recovered it. Coming out of halftime with the Vikings leading 10-3, the two teams exchanged punts to start the third quarter. On the 49’ers second drive, after tight end George Kittle failed to catch the ball on a wide open play, Jimmy Garoppolo threw an absolutely awful pass, which fell into the hands of Vikings rookie Mike Hughes, who raced 28 yards for the first pick-6 of his career. After a 33-yard Robbie Gould field goal, the Vikings marched 75 yards on nine plays and once again, Cousins threw an absolutely flawless pass for a touchdown, this time finding Kyle Rudolph, giving the Vikings a 24-6 lead. San Francisco then went on a seven play, 75-yard drive, and Garoppolo capped the drive with a 22 yard touchdown pass on a scramble play to rookie wideout Dante Pettis, drawing the Niners to within eleven points through three quarters. The new “Aaron Rodgers Rule”, designed to protect quarterbacks, reared its ugly head mid-way through the fourth quarter, as Sheldon Richardson was flagged for landing on Jimmy Garoppolo with his full body weight, allowing the 49ers to extend their drive, which resulted in a 22-yard field goal, making it a one possession game at 24-16. After the two teams exchanged punts, Harrison Smith capped off the Vikings’ first win of the season with a beautiful interception. Kirk Cousins debut as Vikings quarterback wasn’t flashy, but he certainly showed beautiful touch on several passes. He finished the game 20/36 for 244 yards and two touchdowns. The offensive line didn’t help much, though, allowing the Niners to sack Cousins three times. Latavius Murray led the team in rushing with 42 yards on eleven carries, and Dalvin Cook added another 40 yards on sixteen carries. Cook added another 55 yards receiving. Adam Thielen led the way with six catches for 102 yards, and Stefon Diggs added three catches for 43 yards and a touchdown. Defensively, the Vikings held Jimmy Garoppolo to just 15/33 passing for 261 yards and a touchdown, while picking him off three times. Harrison Smith was the biggest story of the day, racking up eight tackles, including two tackles for loss, one sack, one fumble recovery and the back-breaking interception. While he didn’t have that type of day statistically, Sheldon Richardson - with the exception of the sack penalty - was all over the 49ers backfield making plays. Richardson ended up with six tackles and a half a sack. All in all, a pretty good start for the Vikings, who travel to Green Bay next weekend to take on the Packers. Thanks for turning to the Daily Norseman for all of your Vikings gameday coverage.