Minnesota Vikings: Studs and duds vs. 49ers in Divisional Round

Stud: Limiting 49ers passing game

Going into the game, one of the areas that was intriguing was how the Vikings would match up against the 49ers passing game, as that area has been an area of concern for Minnesota for a bulk of the season.

On Saturday at Levi’s Stadium, the Vikings were able to limit the 49ers passing attack — although they can’t say the same for the running game — throughout the four quarters of play in the Divisional Round matchup.

Overall, San Francisco quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo managed to throw for just 131 yards through the air, while completing 11 of his 19 overall passing attempts.

Minnesota was also able to do a nice job for the most part in limiting San Francisco tight end George Kittle, holding the dominant target to three catches for 16 yards.

Dud: Season coming to an end

After tallying a 10-6 record in the regular season, finishing second in the NFC North division behind only the Green Bay Packers and grabbing the second Wild Card spot in the NFC standings, Minnesota kicked off postseason play on a positive note.

The Vikings went into the playoffs as a strong underdog against the New Orleans Saints in the NFC Wild Card Round, but Minnesota went into New Orleans and came away with an overtime victory to move on to take on San Francisco.

As seen on Saturday evening against the top-seeded 49ers in the NFC Divisional Round, the Vikings wouldn’t be able to continue those winning ways while trying to reach the NFC Championship Game next weekend, with Minnesota’s season ending following an ugly performance on the road.

It was a season filled with many ups and downs for the Vikings, both in the regular season and in the playoffs, but it certainly was a rough way to have their season come to a close on Saturday evening at Levi’s Stadium.