Why Vikings vs. 49ers Could Easily Be a Trap Game

❝𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐭𝐚, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲'𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧-𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐭....𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐦 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲'𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐧𝐚𝐩 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲'𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐰𝐚𝐲. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐝𝐨 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐭, 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐮𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐩 𝐞𝐱𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲'𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠.❞ - 𝐁𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐤 𝐏𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐲

The 49ers landed at MSP Airport early Saturday morning, still riding the momentum from their Monday night win against the New York Jets, despite only having a short week to recover. However, this sets the stage for their matchup against the Minnesota Vikings to be a classic trap game. Coming off a high-profile win with little rest, the 49ers might be vulnerable to underestimating the Vikings, a team known for exploiting such situations. Additionally, the Golden City has struggled against the Vikings on their home turf, losing seven straight games in Minnesota, a streak that dates back to 1992. Facing a hungry Minnesota squad on the road after limited preparation makes this a potential pitfall if the 49ers aren’t careful.

First and foremost, the unit led by Kevin O'Connell isn't a trivial opponent by any means. Despite facing the woeful New York Giants, their defense last week held strong, allowing only 3.5 yards per rush. They also pressured Daniel Jones twelve times, which is impressive considering the strength of the Giants' offensive line. With players like Jon Runyan Jr., Andrew Thomas, Jermaine Eluemunor, and Rotem, this line gave Jones an average of 2.82 seconds to throw, ranking twelfth in the league.

With the 49ers missing Christian McCaffrey, arguably the best running back in the league, the Vikings defense under Brian Flores could poise  challenges for the inexperienced Jordan Mason. Although Mason flourished against the New York Jets last week, amassing 152 yards on 29 touches, the Niners historically tend to stumble without McCaffrey on the field. In the past two years without CMC, they have averaged solely 4.2 yards per carry, 1.2 touchdowns per game, and roughly 0.8 interceptions without him—which reflect a decrease in offensive efficiency along with more reliance on the passing game without his presence. Additionally, the team's overall scoring averages 23.8 points per game without him, compared to 29 points with his presence, displaying a drop in both ground and air efficiency.

Let's not forget about last year's performance, right? Minnesota blitzed Purdy on approximately 64 percent of his dropbacks—which led to Purdy completing 15-of-19 attempts for merely 192 yards with one interception. Thanks to Flores not only blitzing tomorrow, but also disguising their play calls and also throwing Purdy off, Minnesota seems set to create a challenging game for the Faithful on Sunday. The 49ers should focus more on running the ball and avoid frequent motion plays, unlike last week when 90% of their plays involved pre-snap motion. Managing motion in the chaotic atmosphere of U.S. Bank Stadium will be difficult and unlikely to succeed tomorrow.

On the other hand, the Vikings can certainly take advantage of the 49ers' defense and come out on top in that matchup. Kevin O'Connell, both the offensive coordinator and head coach, is often deemed as an offensive genius by some analysts, known for his ability to outmaneuver opposing defenses on numerous occasions. For instance, O'Connell's offense could potentially weaken the 49ers' linebacker core, except for Fred Warner since Dre Greenlaw still remains injured. De'Vondre Campbell, the Niners' weak-side linebacker is clearly slower and older than his accomplice—making him a target for plays across the air. The 49ers' safety core of Odin and Brown also remains untested, and another target.

Additionally, Minnesota's starting running back, Aaron Jones, consistently seems to give the 49ers trouble historically; including his 96 scrimmage yards and a touchdown in the W3 2021 game, 170 scrimmage yards during their snowy postseason game, and 108 rushing yards in their latest outing in the divisional round. It also doesn't help that arguably the best receiver in the league is facing against the Niners' secondary, highlighting the potential for numerous deep and central field digs. This week won't be as straightforward as playing against the less innovative Jets' offense, which led to only 51 defensive snaps. The Vikings, known for their longer offensive drives, will likely use their strategy to challenge the defense, and wear them out. It also doesn't help that, aside from 2023, the Niners haven't had a close game at Minneapolis since 1992.

Come Sunday, the coined 'Voyageurs' will likely utilize dump-off passes, screen, swing passes towards the direction of Fowles and Campbell.

-- SportsPulse