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The wins keep coming, and the 49ers' offense keeps lighting up the scoreboard. In a game the 49ers had to have, the offense came up big and put up 34 points. This was the third week in a row and the fourth time in their last five games that they’ve scored at least 30 points. However, the theme remains the same as it has been all year. When the 49ers stay out of their own way, they can put up points with any other team in the league.
The balance this offense has displayed has been the most impressive part of their hot streak, as they have found incredible synchronicity between the pass and run. The 49ers Pass/Run production against their last three opponents
Rams:
179 pass yards / 156 rushing yards
Jaguars:
162 pass yards / 171 rushing yards
Vikings:
215 pass yards / 208 rushing yards
Despite an early interception, the offense eventually regained its rhythm and strung together three different 75+ yard touchdown drives, including a crucial 15-play 85-yard drive to tie the game at 14 just before halftime. This kind of ball-dominant, run-heavy football is exactly the brand of football the 49ers want to play.
They executed it flawlessly as they held the ball for nearly 15 minutes longer than the Vikings offense did, making this the third game in a row that they won the time of possession battle.
After struggling to find their footing in the ground game to start the year, the 49ers rushing attack is firing on all cylinders now. After two games that saw them rush for 156 and 171 yards, respectively, the 49ers surpassed both those totals with a 208-yard outburst on the ground against Minnesota. The Vikings had struggled to contain the run all year, and the 49ers offense masterfully took advantage of this weakness to the tune of 5.3 yards per carry on 39 attempts.
Elijah Mitchell continued his extremely impressive rookie season, carrying the ball 27 times for 133 yards and a touchdown. Mitchell now has four 100+ yard rushing games on the season and is proving to be everything the 49ers could have hoped he would be as the feature back, as he notched his sixth game of the season with 17 or more carries.
Do-it-all wide receiver Deebo Samuel continued his ascent into superstardom, as he finished the day with two touchdowns (both coming on the ground) while also eclipsing the 1000 yard receiving mark just 11 games into the season. (Samuel is the first 49ers wide receiver to surpass 1000 yards since Anquan Boldin in 2014). Samuel did leave the game with what was reported as a groin injury, but it is believed he was held out for the remainder of the game as more of a precaution than due to it being a serious injury.
Second-year wideout Brandon Aiyuk continues to be involved in critical moments, as he finished the day with three catches for 91 yards, as two of his three receptions moved the chains on third down. The talented young wideout is proving to be quite the big-play threat as well, as all three of his catches against Minnesota went for at least 20 yards. Whatever was holding up Aiyuk’s production early in the season appears to be far in the rearview mirror now.
Jimmy Garoppolo had an up and down day, showing spurts of concerning inaccuracy that was highlighted by a first-quarter interception, but ultimately rebounded and made a couple of big-time throws that aided the 49ers on their path to victory. This was the first game of the season that Garoppolo threw an interception in that the 49ers won. (They had been 0-4 in those games prior to this).
All in all, this offense has strung together three extremely impressive performances in a row, and they’ll look to carry that momentum into Seattle, where they will square away with their division rival. The scariest part for opposing teams is that this 49ers offense could still find some room to improve, which they have proved they are more than capable of doing as they have torched opposing defenses over the last month or so.
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