Golden Nuggets: What matchup are you most looking forward to on MNF?

Greg Cosell identifies biggest challenge 49ers will have vs. Vikings

“Brian Flores who’s their defensive coordinator, he loves to blitz,” Cosell said on KNBR Thursday. “They are blitzing at far and away the highest percentage of any team in the NFL. The thing about Flores is, he’s not necessarily tendency based when he blitzes, he’ll just blitz. I’m very curious to see how the 49ers come out offensively after a game in which they did not execute at their highest level. That to me is a fascinating component to this game.”

Kyle Shanahan provides injury updates on McCaffrey, Samuel, Williams, others

“Shanahan described McCaffrey’s injury as specifically an oblique injury — it was previously designated as oblique/rib — and confirmed that the rib is not involved, but didn’t offer any other clues to his timeline besides describing him as day-to-day.”

49ers injury update: McCaffrey’s MRI encouraging; Deebo day to day

“I thought it was,” Shanahan said of McCaffrey on Thursday. “Anybody who’s day to day, means they have a chance.”

49ers mailbag: Did we witness end of Brock Purdy? Trade deadline action? (paywall)

“I think Purdy’s Keystone Cops “throw,” his slippery ball fumble that landed behind him, created a false story line that his 12-for-27 performance was weather-related.

It wasn’t raining for most of the game. And only one of Purdy’s incompletions was clearly impacted by moisture: He tossed a fluttering duck to Kittle down the right sideline that landed out of bounds, which came on the snap before his slipped-from-his-grasp fumble.

It is worth noting that those back-to-back plays occurred when a steady rain was falling. So does that mean Purdy needs to wear gloves if the 49ers play in a future waterlogged game?

NFL QBs typically only wear gloves as a last resort. In 2019, for example, Jimmy Garoppolo didn’t sport them during the 49ers’ slip-and-slide, 9-0 win at Washington. However, he relented when conditions were even worse during the Bomb Cyclone/Atmospheric River loss to the Colts in 2021.

Garoppolo said he was surprised he could still spin the ball effectively: “It was my first time wearing gloves. It actually worked out really well.”

Why 49ers’ Fred Warner is the prototype for today’s elite middle linebacker (paywall)

“What I love most is he’s seldom out of position,” five-time All-Pro Patrick Willis said of Warner in a Chronicle interview. “What I like even more, and I’ve told him this, is the way he plays the pass, the way he floats. I really admire how well he plays in open space.”....“Fred was always laser focused on the details,” Hauser said. “He saw what would transpire in front of him through film study. Many times teams would try to fool him with the option or bootleg, and he wouldn’t get fooled. He’d come up and wiggle his index finger, like, ‘I’m not taking the bait.’ “

Why Steve Young views 49ers QB Brock Purdy’s defeat as a ‘great opportunity’

“It’s actually a great opportunity this week for Brock to now take, with everyone going, ‘Wow, what was that?’ and then go on the road and change that ... narrative,” Young said Wednesday on KNBR’s “Tolbert and Copes” show. “Like, now I know that he can come back from a bad game. We haven’t seen that yet.”

49ers must fix a struggling run defense to unlock their pass rush (paywall)

“Greenlaw, of course, has been a spark plug for the team’s defense. Shanahan expects him back at practice this week.

Opponents have rolled out a consistent formula against the 49ers defense this season. They’ve focused on the quick passing game to lessen damage from the 49ers’ pass rush, and they’ve strived to steadily run the ball to establish a threat that opens the immediate space necessary for those throws.”