49ers Down Vikings 17-6 In Preseason Opener: Game Recap

Alright fans, the first 60 minutes of 2012 49er football are in the books, and it's time for a recap of all the action.

After breaking out to a double-digit first half lead, the men in Red and Gold played out a scoreless second half to hold on for a convincing 17-6 win over the visiting Minnesota Vikings.

The majority of the 90-man roster appeared at least momentarily in the game, but a few players who are expected to contribute heavily in 2012 failed to make an appearance on Friday night.

Veterans Frank Gore, Justin Smith and Mario Manningham were all held out of action for undisclosed reasons, and future Hall of Fame WR Randy Moss played only four snaps in his much-hyped debut in Red and Gold.

So what happened with those who did play? Okay, let's get to that.

Contrary to last year's preseason opener against the Saints, Alex Smith and the first unit came out and marched 84 yards on 12 plays, finished off by a Smith TD pass to roster hopeful Brett Swain. Michael Crabtree and Ted Ginn Jr. took the field as the starting receivers, but neither played a big part in the game—Crabtree recorded just one catch for three yards.

It wound up being Alex's only drive under center, as he finished 3/3 for 16 yards and a TD on the day. He would be replaced by current No. 2 QB and former second-round pick Colin Kaepernick, who didn't wait nearly as long as the 49ers starter to put six points on the board.

Kaepernick took a designed run play 78 yards for a TD on his second play from scrimmage—fooling an undisciplined Vikings D and going untouched before making a solid stiff arm on CB Chris Cook at the five yard-line.

Special teams standouts Anthony Dixon and Rock Cartwright surprisingly received the bulk of the carries in the run game, totaling 90 rushing yards on 20 carries between the two. Both had some impressive runs, and are probably battling each other for a spot on the 53-man roster. Brandon Jacobs and Kendall Hunter each ran with purpose, displaying their individual strengths for the faithful to see.

As for the receivers, there was some good to go with the bad. The passing was accurate for the most part—especially from Scott Tolzien—but even some of the crisp, accurate passes made their way to the ground due to lapses in focus by the wideouts.

2012 first-round pick A.J. Jenkins dropped two catchable balls, but hauled in two tough passes away from his body as well. Undrafted free agent Nathan Palmer has drawn praise for an impressive camp thus far, but struggled with his hands in this game, too. Fellow undrafted free agent and roster hopeful Chris Owusu made a couple nice grabs and showed some serious short-area quickness in gaining multiple first downs to extend drives.

Overall, it was an extremely promising performance for the offense, despite totaling just 17 points on the day.

On the defensive side of the ball, there were far less questions entering the game, but there is an additional concern coming out of it.

Rookie phenom Aldon Smith impressed early as he looks to transition into full-time duties at OLB, but took a hard spill on his hip late in the first quarter and was carted to the locker room. He was later diagnosed with a hip bruise (per Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee), which is somewhat of a relief, but concerning nonetheless. Until further evaluations arise, we can only hope for a speedy recovery for our one-of-a-kind edge-rushing OLB.

In other defensive news, Pro Bowl CB Carlos Rogers was burned early by a Christian Ponder deep ball, and appeared frustrated with FS Dashon Goldson's lack of help on the play. Get it straightened out now, boys.

Other than the occasional lapse in coverage, it was a promising night for the defense as well. Keep in mind, the Vikings do not have much depth anywhere on their roster, but it's safe to say the 49ers dominated the tempo from start to finish.

The defensive line pressured consistently, hauling in an interception and recording four sacks on the night. Roster hopeful Eric Bakhtiari logged two sacks, and free-agent signing Perrish Cox looked sharp in his first action since 2010, making several big hits and making a diving interception in the game's final minutes.

The 49ers will face a much deeper, well-rounded squad next Saturday in the Houston Texans, but Friday's win over the Vikings was a great way to get things started and provides Harbaugh and the coaching staff with a solid amount of game film to begin shaping the 53-man roster.

Football is back in the Golden City, a refreshing feeling for Bay Area football fans.

Posted in: 2012 NFL Season,aldon smith,Alex Smith,Colin Kaepernick,Jim Harbaugh,San Francisco 49ers