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SANTA CLARA — A little rest does the body good.
In the case of the 49ers, a whole lot of good.
Playing their first game in 13 days following a much-needed and hard-earned bye week, the 49ers overpowered the Minnesota Vikings 27-10 Saturday behind a dominant defensive performance and a ruthless rushing attack, putting themselves on the precipice of the Super Bowl.
Yes, with one more win, these Niners are heading to Miami for the Big Game on Feb. 2
And after the way they played Saturday, the way they exerted their will on their opponent for 60 straight minutes, what’s to say they won’t be able to win the whole shebang down there?
Yes, Saturday was a vintage performance by San Francisco, one that was reminiscent of the team’s early-season run, when it went undefeated in its first eight games. It was the 49ers playing at their best at the best possible time.
They looked fresh. They looked hungry. And in turn, they re-established their core identities in the biggest home game in Levi’s Stadium history.
Those identities lie on the line of scrimmage. In an era where the game is being called “basketball on grass,” the Niners and Vikings went back to the grassroots. Coaches called this game “big-boy football” in the build-up, and Saturday’s contest was entirely that.
And as the game progressed, the identity of the bigger boy was clear. San Francisco’s relentless conviction eventually broke the will of Minnesota, a team that was playing an unhealthy second game in six days.
“You could feel it,” guard Laken Tomlinson said of the Vikings’ fatigue. “[But] we gotta keep imposing our will. That’s our standard.”
On offense, the 49ers ran the ball a gaudy 47 times Saturday. It marked the most carries for the 49ers in one game since 2011 and the second-most carries in a game in the NFL this year. It also was the most in 49ers playoff history, and the 49ers have a long playoff history.
The 49ers were able to run the ball so effectively that they “started drawing up plays on the sideline,” Kyle Juszczyk said. “Plays we didn’t practice all week.”
At one point in the third quarter, following Richard Sherman’s interception of Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins, the 49ers ran the ball on eight consecutive snaps and reached the end zone. The drive effectively decided the contest, giving the 49ers a 24-10 lead.
Yes, it was only a two-score game at the time, but it was more than enough cushion for the 49ers’ defense. San Francisco was simply not allowing Minnesota to pick up yards. Minnesota went three-and-out on seven of its nine meaningful drives (they had two possessions after the game was unquestionably out of reach). The Niners sacked Cousins six times with only a four-man pass rush and held Minnesota running back Dalvin Cook — the key to the Vikings’ offense — to only 18 yards rushing.
Only an underwhelming performance by 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (74.7 quarterback rating) and the clock-burning nature of running plays kept the score as close as it was.
“We thought the team that got over 30 runs would win this game and we truly looked at that as a team goal,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said. “We had 47, but it’s a lot easier to do [that] when the other team goes 2-of-12 on third down.
“When you just see the way the defense is playing, it makes it so much easier to stay with [the run]. The whole team fed off it.”
“We were able to be us,” linebacker Kwon Alexander said. “When we play together as a team, it’s hard to beat us.”
A big reason the Niners were able to be themselves was the re-introduction of Alexander into the lineup. The linebacker tore his right pectoral muscle in the 49ers’ Halloween game, but made an improbable return Saturday — in part because of the Niners’ bye week — and his boundless enthusiasm ensured that San Francisco didn’t come out of the gates flat.
“He brought a lot of energy,” said 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh. “He was awesome.”
That energy is translating into wins. The 49ers are now 9-0 in games Alexander has played this season. It’s hard to say that’s mere coincidence, too. With the rangy linebacker in the lineup, the Niners have held opposing quarterbacks to 58 percent passing and a paltry 141 yards per game.
The Niners also welcomed back pass rusher Dee Ford and strong safety Jaquiski Tartt to the lineup Saturday. The former ensured that fellow defensive linemen Nick Bosa, DeForest Buckner, and Arik Armstead didn’t face double teams all day, as had been the case following Ford’s Week 11 hamstring injury. The latter allowed Saleh to mix up defensive coverages behind that defensive line, confusing the Vikings from start to finish.
The Vikings’ only touchdown came on their second possession, a 41-yard pass from Cousins to Stefon Diggs. The play prompted Saleh to make a change at left cornerback, bringing Emmanuel Moseley in for Ahkello Witherspoon. From that point until four minutes from the end, Minnesota was able to muster just one first down.
“It looks different,” Shanahan said of the 49ers’ defense with the three Pro Bowl-caliber players back in the fold.
“They played fast, they recognize things,” Sherman said of the gang getting back together. “All three of them made a huge difference in this game.”
The performance wasn’t perfect. Garoppolo will have to play better next Sunday. After a strong start, he threw an inexcusable interception in the second quarter, no doubt leading the Niners deepening their commitment to the run.
The 49ers won’t have two weeks to prepare for the NFC Championship game, either. And they certainly won’t be playing a team as banged up and one-dimensional as the Vikings next week.
It probably won’t be as easy next Sunday as it was on Saturday.
But if what we saw against the Vikings is once again the norm for San Francisco, if the early-season defensive swagger is here to stay and the team can run the ball at will, well, then the 49ers have cracked the formula for winning postseason football games.
And there might not be a team remaining in the playoffs that can match these Niners at their best.
