Vikings Snap Counts vs. 49ers: Depth on Full Display in Upset Win

Well, that was unexpected.

Facing one of the best teams in the NFL under the primetime lights, the Vikings turned their season around with a 22-17 victory over the 49ers on Monday night. It took their most complete, all-around performance of the season to get it done. In addition to star performances from Kirk Cousins, Jordan Addison, Christian Darrisaw, and Camryn Bynum, one of the stories of this win for the Vikings was that they leaned on their depth.

Let's take a look at Minnesota's offensive and defensive snap counts from this one to see what we can learn.

Vikings offensive snap counts vs. 49ers (out of 70)

QB Kirk Cousins: 70
RT Brian O'Neill: 70
RG Ed Ingram: 70
LT Christian Darrisaw: 70
LG Dalton Risner: 70
C Garrett Bradbury: 70
WR K.J. Osborn: 65
TE T.J. Hockenson: 59
WR Jordan Addison: 52
WR Brandon Powell: 43
RB Alexander Mattison: 37
TE Josh Oliver: 30
RB Cam Akers: 27
WR Trishton Jackson: 11
FB C.J. Ham: 11
TE Johnny Mundt: 8
WR N'Keal Harry: 4
RB Ty Chandler: 3

Already without Justin Jefferson, the Vikings lost Addison briefly when his breakout game was interrupted by cramps in the second half. That meant an even greater role for Powell, who finished with 69 yards on five touches and caught two big passes on third downs. They even turned to Jackson, who was elevated from the practice squad and caught his first regular season pass in the NFL. Harry also played a few snaps, mostly in a run-blocking role.

Osborn played the most snaps of any pass-catcher, but was a distant third in targets behind Hockenson and Addison.

The Mattison-Chandler split was much smaller than it was last weekend in Chicago. Mattison played more, but he finished with 11 combined targets and carries to Akers' 13. Mattison was slightly more efficient on the ground, but an impressive 30-yard reception for Akers gave him a 61-42 edge in total yardage. I wonder if the snap share might be basically 50/50 moving forward.

The Vikings even got Chandler involved on a few plays. He had a big gain on a trick play that was called back due to a penalty, then eventually did get his first touch of the season on a 12-yard reception. Kevin O'Connell used just about everybody at his disposal in this one.

Risner played well enough in his first start with the Vikings that it's tough to see him coming out of the lineup even when Ezra Cleveland is healthy. We'll see.

Vikings defensive snap counts vs. 49ers (out of 53)

S Camryn Bynum: 53
S Harrison Smith: 53
S Josh Metellus: 53
LB Jordan Hicks: 53
CB Byron Murphy Jr: 53
CB Akayleb Evans: 52
OLB Danielle Hunter: 47
OLB D.J. Wonnum: 47
DT Dean Lowry: 40
DT Harrison Phillips: 39
DT Jonathan Bullard: 37
OLB Pat Jones II: 24
CB Andrew Booth Jr: 13
S Theo Jackson: 7
LB Ivan Pace Jr: 5
DT Khyiris Tonga: 5
DT Jaquelin Roy: 2

The Vikings used three safeties on every single snap against the 49ers. Heck, they used their fourth safety (Jackson) almost as much as their third cornerback (Booth).

With no Marcus Davenport, Hunter and Wonnum were basically full-time players at OLB and Jones mixed in on passing downs. Against the 49ers' run game, the Vikings leaned heavily on their big bodies: Lowry, Phillips, and Bullard. Tonga and Roy also made brief appearances up front.

This was the second straight game where Hicks was the only off-ball linebacker who played much. Pace had a strong start to the season and a big role in the first five games, but he's now played a total of 17 snaps in the last two weeks. It seems like his usage moving forward might be sporadic and matchup-based.

Not used at all were Brian Asamoah II and Mekhi Blackmon, who has been passed up by Booth on the depth chart at corner.

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