The Worksheet, a comprehensive fantasy football preview by Rich Hribar, breaks down everything you need to know about the Week 2 matchup between the 49ers and Vikings.
Find a breakdown of every Week 2 NFL game in our Worksheet Hub.
| San Francisco | Rank | @ | Minnesota | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -6.0 | Spread | 6.0 | ||
| 25.75 | Implied Total | 19.75 | ||
| 32.0 | 6 | Points/Gm | 28.0 | 9 |
| 19.0 | 11 | Points All./Gm | 6.0 | 1 |
| 70.0 | 5 | Plays/Gm | 51.0 | 26 |
| 49.0 | 3 | Opp. Plays/Gm | 68.0 | 25 |
| 5.7 | 12 | Off. Yards/Play | 6.1 | 6 |
| 5.4 | 18 | Def. Yards/Play | 3.5 | 5 |
| 54.29% | 6 | Rush% | 50.98% | 12 |
| 45.71% | 27 | Pass% | 49.02% | 21 |
| 38.78% | 10 | Opp. Rush % | 30.88% | 2 |
| 61.22% | 23 | Opp. Pass % | 69.12% | 31 |
- San Francisco averaged 38.6 yards per possession in Week 1 (5th) after averaging 37.6 yards per drive in 2023 (2nd).
- The 49ers had 16 plays of 10 or more yards in Week 1, second in the league behind the Chiefs (17).
- The 49ers converted 40.0% (2-of-5) of their red zone possessions in Week 1 (21st) after a league-high 67.2% rate in 2023.
- 21.7% of Minnesota’s running back rushes in Week 1 went for 10 or more yards, their highest rate in a game since Week 3 of last season.
- Minnesota was 20th in the NFL in the rate of running back runs for 10 or more yards in 2023 (8.9%).
- Aaron Jones exceeded the yardage expectation on 64.3% of his runs per Next Gen Stats, the highest rate in Week 1.
Trust = spike production for that player
Quarterback
Brock Purdy: Purdy opened the season as the QB24 (10.3 points), but he played well against a defense that allowed the fewest passing points per game over the past two seasons.
Purdy connected on 19-of-29 passes for 231 yards (8.0 Y/A), but the 49ers could not convert in the red zone like they did a year ago. When they did put the ball into the end zone, it was on the ground.
Purdy was the QB20 (12.8 points) in Minnesota last season, but a lot was going on under the surface.
Trent Williams and Deebo Samuel did not play in that game, and Purdy may have suffered a concussion on a quarterback sneak.
He turned the ball over three times, but he also threw for 9.1 yards per pass attempt in that game while the 49ers averaged 6.1 yards per play.
In true Brian Flores fashion, he sent extra defenders at Purdy.
Minnesota blitzed Purdy on 50.0% of his dropbacks, the second-highest rate of blitzes he faced in 2023.
On those dropbacks against the blitz, Purdy was 13-of-15 (86.7%) for 11.8 yards per pass attempt.
When the Vikings did not blitz, Purdy was 8-of-15 (53.3%) for 6.3 yards per attempt.
Minnesota was once again aggressive out of the box this season.
They blitzed on 42.6% of passing snaps in Week 1 against Daniel Jones, the second-highest rate in the league.
The 49ers still may be without Christian McCaffrey, but with Williams and Samuel going along for this trip to Minnesota, I would expect Purdy to protect the football better in this one and capitalize on the aggressiveness of Minnesota.
What it will come down to for fantasy is touchdowns. That will determine whether Purdy is a mid-range QB1 or a fringe QB1 who has more efficiency than counting stats.
Minnesota has only allowed multiple touchdown passes in 7 games since the start of last season.
Sam Darnold: Darnold was on schedule in Week 1, delivering a QB14 (14.6 points) outing on the road against the Giants.
He connected on 79.2% (19-of-24) of his Week 1 passes, which was third in the league.
He averaged 8.7 yards per pass attempt, which was 7th.
The Vikings never were challenged on the scoreboard, which prevented a larger runout.
Darnold is an intriguing QB2 for the rest of the season paired with Kevin O’Connell, but this is not a spot where we are looking to pick on the matchup outside of 2QB leagues.
Darnold is familiar with the pieces on this defense, but San Francisco does have a new defensive coordinator in Nick Sorensen.
The 49ers have allowed six QB1 scoring weeks since the start of last season.
If Darnold can hit here, there is added confidence that he can be this year’s Geno Smith or Baker Mayfield.
Running Back
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More Week 2 Fantasy Breakdowns From The Worksheet:
| Matchup | Time |
|---|---|
| Bills @ Dolphins -- FREE | Thursday Night Football |
| Saints @ Cowboys | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Colts @ Packers | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Jets @ Titans | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| 49ers @ Vikings | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Seahawks @ Patriots | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Giants @ Commanders | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Chargers @ Panthers | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Bucs @ Lions | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Browns @ Jaguars | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Raiders @ Ravens | Sunday -- 1 p.m. ET |
| Rams @ Cardinals | Sunday -- 4:05 p.m. ET |
| Steelers @ Broncos | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Bengals @ Chiefs | Sunday -- 4:25 p.m. ET |
| Bears @ Texans | Sunday Night Football |
| Falcons @ Eagles -- FREE | Monday Night Football |
