49ers Studs and Duds: Defensive coordinator Steve Wilks embarrassed in Minnesota
The 49ers are on a losing streak.
Yes, two is a streak.
After losing to the Browns last weekend in Cleveland, the Niners dropped another road game Monday night in Minnesota.
San Francisco was out-gained, out-muscled, lost the turnover battle, and, subsequently, outscored 22-17.
Here are the studs and duds from another dud of a game:
STUDS
DT Javon Hargrave
All you need to know about the excellence of the 49ers’ defensive tackle was seen when he shed two Vikings offensive linemen and came up with a tackle for loss on a first-quarter Vikings run play.
Can he also be an elite pass rusher? The Niners need one of those.
WR Brandon Aiyuk
You can’t knock the 49ers’ top receiver for this game. He showed up in a big way.
TE George Kittle
He showed up, too.
LT Jaylon Moore
No one is going to replace Trent Williams, but Moore played well filling in for the injured All-Pro. You didn’t notice him on Monday, did you?
HC Kyle Shanahan
The 49ers’ offense had the right plays called. The players just failed to execute.
RB Christian McCaffrey
He didn’t have his typical burst on Monday, and his first-quarter fumble took points off the board, but McCaffrey was still the engine of the offense.
Once Shanahan figured out that he needed to get McCaffrey the ball outside the tackles, the Niners really moved the ball.
DUDS
QB Brock Purdy
What on earth was that first interception? There are miscommunications, and then there’s tossing it directly to the other team.
The second interception wasn’t much better, though the circumstances were more dire. No matter how positive Purdy might have been before that INT with 5:30 to play, it’s wiped away by that brutal, game-losing play.
DT Arik Armstead
He was stood up so often Monday night that I lost count.
DE Nick Bosa
I’m sure Pro Football Focus will love the performance. I’m not high on it, seeing as Kirk Cousins went the entire game without being sacked and Bosa was arguably the Niners’ third-best defensive end Monday.
Jake Moody PK
Missed from 40 yards — pushing it again.
The make of the 55-yard make was great — redemptive, even — but Moody can’t be held to a make-one, miss-one standard. This is the NFL.
Steve Wilks DC
Worked over by Vikings head coach and offensive play caller Kevin O’Connell. When he called for a blitz, the Vikings knew it was coming. When he called for zone defense, the Vikings saw it coming. The Vikings going 8-of-13 on third down? That’s on the coordinator. Execution by the players wasn’t up to the standard it should be — the Vikings’ 452 yards attest to that — but Wilks consistently had those players in disadvantageous situations.
Charvarius Ward CB
He took the ball from Jordan Addison to end the Vikings’ first drive. Welcome to the NFL, rookie.
But Addison got him back to end the first half, stealing an interception from the cornerback and taking it 60 yards to the end zone.
The Vikings picked on Ward, running double-moves against him all night, betting the physical cornerback would commit fouls. He did.
With no pass rush and an opposite corner who is a liability, Ward has to be much better. He was sub-par on Monday.