Vikings hold off 49ers in Monday night thriller
Cam Bynum's two interceptions in the fourth quarter sealed a huge win for the Minnesota Vikings, a 22-17 thriller over the juggernaut San Francisco 49ers on Monday Night Football.
Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell elected to run the ball and kill time on 3rd-and-10 with two minutes to go, a decision that took the clock down to 1:16 but also put pressure on kicker Greg Joseph to nail a 50-yard field goal for a chance to go up by eight points. Joseph missed it wide right, but O'Connell's calculated call paid off as his defense stepped up under the prime-time lights as Bynum intercepted Brock Purdy for the game-clinching play with 25 seconds left on the clock.
Minnesota's third win of the season should silence trade talks for another week as they have a chance to win at Lambeau Field this coming Sunday to get back to .500 two days before the Oct. 31 NFL trade deadline.
Key stats:
- Kirk Cousins: 35 of 45, 379 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
- Jordan Addison: 7 catches, 124 yards, 2 TD
- T.J. Hockenson: 11 catches, 84 yards
- Brandon Powell: 4 catches, 64 yards
- K.J. Osborn: 5 catches, 47 yards
- Alexander Mattison: 8 carries, 39 yards
- Cam Akers: 10 carries, 31 yards
- Vikings O-line: 0 sacks allowed
Kirk Cousins threw for 378 yards and improved his record on Monday Night Football to 3-10. He led the Vikings to five wins in their last eight prime-time games. His go-to target with Justin Jefferson out with a hamstring injury was rookie Jordan Addison, who lit up the Niners for 124 yards and two touchdowns.
Like many Vikings games this season, the start was ugly as Cousins was intercepted by Charvarius Ward on the third play of the game. But as the 49ers marched into the red zone, Christian McCaffrey fumbled, Dean Lowry recovered and the Vikings responded with a 10-play, 89-yard touchdown drive that ended on a 20-yard strike from Cousins to Addison.
Oct 23, 2023; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jordan Addison (3) celebrates his touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers in the first quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports
The Vikings had turned the ball over on their opening possession three other games this season and every other time resulted in the opponent scoring a touchdown.
After Jake Moody missed 40-yard field goal wide right, the Vikings went on a long drive that ate 7 minutes, 20 seconds off the clock. The 13-play effort ended with a 21-yard Greg Joseph field goal for a 10-0 lead. Even though they didn't come away with a touchdown in a goal-to-goal situation, the drive was one of resolve as Minnesota overcame a 2nd-and-24 situation at the 49ers 46-yard line and got all the way down to the 2-yard line before the offense stalled.
But back came the 49ers as McCaffrey set an NFL record with a touchdown in a 16th consecutive game – a 3-yard rush – that ended a 12-play drive that went 75 yards and lasted 6 minutes, 29 seconds.
Minnesota struck back on a 60-yard touchdown pass from Cousins to Addison with seven seconds left in the first half. The pass was thrown behind Addison and the rookie receiver ripped it away from Ward -- getting revenge from Ward's pick in the first quarter -- and ran into the end zone for his sixth touchdown of his rookie season.
In the third quarter, the Vikings settled for a short field goal to take a 19-7 lead despite having hte ball 1st-and-goal from the 1-yard line. And the 49ers made them pay with a three-play scoring drive that saw McCaffrey catch a pass and sprint 35 yards for a touchdown, cutting the deficit to 19-14.
Back came the Vikings with a 54-yard field goal by Joseph for a 22-14 lead, and that was the score entering the fourth quarter until Jake Moody buried a 55-yard field goal of his own to make it a 22-17 game with 13:21 to play.
San Francisco was driving after forcing Minnesota's first punt of the night when Brock Purdy threw an interception over the middle of the field to Vikings safety Bynum with 5:36 left. That allowed Minnesota to kill the clock down under two minutes when Joseph missed the kick, putting the pressure on the defense to win the game and Bynum came up big again.
At 3-4 the Vikings now have a chance to beat the Packers at Lambeau Field on Sunday to get back to .500.
