The Worst Mistake Made by the 49ers Against the Vikings

Plenty of mistakes were made by the 49ers in their 23-17 loss to the Vikings, but there was one play that was the most egregious.

Sep 15, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) reacts as San Francisco 49ers linebacker Fred Warner (54) looks on during the second quarter U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images / Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Losing to the Minnesota Vikings was brutal for the San Francisco 49ers, but deserved. They made too many mistakes in the game that kept the Vikings alive and full of hope.

However, there was one play that was the worst mistake made by the 49ers against the Vikings. That play was the 97-yard touchdown pass allowed to star wide receiver Justin Jefferson. This play may seem like the most obvious choice since it was the biggest play surrendered.

JUSTIN JEFFERSON 97 YARD TUDDY!!!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/0PJs9mheCK

— NFL (@NFL) September 15, 2024

But the reason this play was the 49ers' worst mistake was because safety George Odum was matched up with Jefferson. Odum is predominantly a special teams player. He is starting in place of Talanoa Hufanga as he works his way back from a torn ACL.

Under no circumstance should Odum ever be matched up against Jefferson. That was a time for the 49ers to call timeout to get out of that look. Defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen was extremely foolish for doing that. It doesn't matter if Sam Darnold is the quarterback. A backup could've identified the mismatch there and targeted Jefferson.

Sam Darnold & Justin Jefferson (97-yd TD)

Two plays after the Vikings defense forced a turnover on downs near their own goal line, Darnold & Jefferson connect deep to put Minnesota up two scores.

🔹 Fourth Down Stop: +8.7% Win Probability
🔹 Jefferson TD: +21.3% Win Probability pic.twitter.com/TTmsFogFYQ

— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) September 15, 2024

It was insane that Sorensen called that play believing it was a good idea with Odum covering the best receiver in the NFL. Either there was a mistake made with the communication on who is guarding who or he is delusional. The 49ers begged the Vikings to score there.

Had that score happened with Charvarius Ward or Deommodore Lenoir on Jefferson, then that's fine. You can live with that. Tip your cap to Jefferson winning the rep and Darnold delivering against a good defender. But against Odum? That was all on the 49ers and Sorensen is the culprit.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan has to reprimand Sorensen for that play call. It was malpractice to have a player whose strength is as a special teams player on Jefferson. Every defensive coordinator in the NFL could get polled about that play call and every single one of them would vote against it.

Outside of that 97-yard touchdown, Jefferson was relatively in check. He got most of his yards off that play. He wasn't dominating the 49ers' defense by any means. Still, you have to wonder why the 49ers never have Ward shadow an offense's top receiver.

They only do it when they play the Seattle Seahawks to guard D.K. Metcalf. Had they tasked Ward, or Lenoir on that play since he's a slot corner, to guard Jefferson, then it is less likely that goes for a touchdown. That play inflated a lot of confidence and momentum for the Vikings.

The 49ers can easily bounce back and avoid a mistake like that in the future. All they have to do is match their players up accordingly.