MINNEAPOLIS — Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell’s messages before the season, which focused on the team’s play style, all came with a consistent meaning: If the 2024 Vikings were to be successful, they’d do it with a style similar to the one the San Francisco 49ers had used to make four NFC Championship Game trips in five years.

The Vikings couldn’t have delivered a much stronger statement about their play style than the one they made Sunday afternoon in a 23-17 win over the 49ers.

They built a 20-7 lead in the third quarter after Josh Metellus intercepted Brock Purdy, and sacked the 49ers quarterback a total of five times. Even though the 49ers held the ball for 34:48, the Vikings countered with a number of big plays, like C.J. Ham’s first-quarter blocked punt and Sam Darnold’s 97-yard touchdown to Justin Jefferson.

Darnold finished 17-of-26 for 268 yards and two touchdowns, while running five times for 32 yards.

Why it happened: After the 49ers held the ball for nearly 20 minutes in the first half, the game looked like one where San Francisco might eventually muscle its way to victory. But the Vikings’ defense stood up in the third quarter, sacking Purdy four times and setting up a touchdown when Metellus intercepted a pass that had bounced off several sets of hands before settling in his arms at the 49ers’ 10.

They also got more than a few big plays from Darnold on third down, including two scrambles to extend drives and a key series of conversions on a long fourth-quarter drive that sealed the game.

What it means: It’s the second straight year the Vikings have won as home underdogs against the 49ers, and while they’ll have plenty of injury concerns after this one, the victory’s value can’t be understated as an endorsement for how they want to play, and for what they can do with Darnold. They troubled Purdy with pressure throughout the game, gained 146 yards on the ground and showed their confidence in Darnold’s ability to push the ball downfield off play action. We talked all offseason about the difficulty of the Vikings’ early schedule; the fact they’re 2-0, before another tough home game against the Texans, stands in marked contrast to their 0-3 start last season.

Play of the game: After a goal-line stand in the second quarter, the Vikings started their drive from the 49ers’ 2 with a Blake Brandel false start. Two plays later, O’Connell called a deep shot off play action that had Darnold setting up in his own end zone while Justin Jefferson and Jalen Nailor broke downfield off a stack set. Nailor’s crossing route occupied Charvarius Ward, while Jefferson got a step on George Odum and hauled in Darnold’s pass 55 yards downfield. Jefferson crossed the field and crossed back, picking up one last block from Nailor to finish the play with a 97-yard touchdown. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, Jefferson traveled 127.5 yards on the play, the most on any scoring play since the NFL began its player tracking service in 2016.

Turning point: There are too many of them to pick from in a game where both teams had drives of 98 yards or longer, the Vikings blocked a punt and San Francisco forced two turnovers deep in their own territory. But we’ll go with this: After the 49ers pulled within six, Darnold began a drive from his own 30 with Jefferson out of the game and Aaron Jones in the medical tent. He completed three third-down passes for first-down conversions on the drive, including a 26-yard throw to Nailor he placed between two 49ers defenders. The drive didn’t finish with a touchdown, but led to a Will Reichard field goal that put the Vikings up by two scores.

Up next: vs. Texans, Sept. 22, 1 p.m. ET. Houston (1-0) plays Chicago on Sunday night.

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