The Vikings made 7 of 12 third down attempts, converted three of them on a fourth-quarter drive that lasted 6 minutes, 46 seconds, and tied the game with a field goal. They sacked Brock Purdy six times for 11 total sacks this season; five of those sacks came in the third quarter when Josh Metellus intercepted Purdy’s pass and set up a touchdown that gave the Vikings a 20-7 lead.
“When you’re not used much as a DB, you know the front line is doing something right,” Metellus said. “The ball came out fast, just like they said it would. They got to the quarterback. Purdy was rattled, you could see it on the back line: They didn’t trust his throws.”
Warner forced two turnovers deep in 49ers territory, intercepting Darnold as he tried to throw a ball over the middle for Trent Sherfield and knocking the ball out of Jones’ hands as the running back approached the goal line on a screen pass in the third quarter. But the Vikings forced two turnovers of their own, not counting CJ Ham’s blocked punt that set up Will Reichard’s field goal to start the scoring drive. They also forced two fourth-down stops, including one at their own 3 when Andrew Van Ginkel deflected a Purdy pass and Harrison Smith deflected it off Jauan Jennings.
“They had a zero blitz and a guy got free, which is just the way it is with our pass defense,” Purdy said. “They had a hand on it, ended up getting a deflection, so it was just a good defensive play by them.”
In a game full of changes, the biggest thunderclap of the day was preceded by the score on the goal line.
The Vikings were facing a second-and-9 attempt from their own three-point line when O’Connell called for a deep play-action throw that “has been on the cards for a while,” dating to a play they ran against the 49ers last year. The explosiveness of the moment, with Darnold standing in his own end zone while Nick Bosa was applying pressure from the right side, was not lost on O’Connell. “There’s a little bit of self-talk behind it,” he said. “When you’re standing in the zone with your heels like that, the opportunity is there for both teams.”
