Vikings Cap 32-31 Preseason Win in Comeback vs. 49ers with 2-Point Conversion

The Minnesota Vikings earned a 32-31 preseason victory over the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday in dramatic fashion.

Running back Terrell Newby scored a touchdown on the final play of regulation, and quarterback Taylor Heinicke used his legs to beat San Francisco's defense to the corner of the end zone for the two-point conversion—avoiding overtime and clinching the win all in one swoop.

While the Vikings fans at U.S. Bank Stadium celebrated the walk-off win, it was San Francisco's starters who seemed more prepared for the start of the season than Minnesota's in the dress rehearsal.

Perhaps most encouragingly for the 49ers, quarterback Brian Hoyer and the first-unit offense clicked on all cylinders under new head coach Kyle Shanahan—who helped lead the Atlanta Falcons to the last Super Bowl as an offensive coordinator.

Hoyer thrived against Minnesota's starters, going 12-of-17 for 176 yards and two touchdowns. His scoring strikes went to Carlos Hyde and Marquise Goodwin, and it was Goodwin's play which stood out on San Francisco's opening drive as he streaked past Minnesota's secondary with his head-turning speed:

Hoyer marched the offense right down the field on its second drive as well before finding Hyde for a 24-yard score and looked comfortable setting his feet in the pocket and going through his progressions.

The defensive struggles weren't the only issue for the Vikings.

The first-team offense continued its preseason-long struggle to put points on the board, entering the half facing a 14-0 deficit and prolonging its poor efforts:

This is an offense transitioning away from the Adrian Peterson era at running back, and rookie Dalvin Cook, Latavius Murray and Jerick McKinnon will be asked to carry the load. Sunday was Murray's Vikings debut after offseason ankle surgery, and he posted six yards on two carries and 10 yards on two receptions.

Cook saw more opportunities with 17 yards on five carries, but it was McKinnon who led the team with 27 rushing yards.

Minnesota also needs quarterback Sam Bradford to make enough plays alongside the running game to improve on last season's 8-8 finish. Despite the inability to finish drives Sunday, he was solid at 17-of-21 for 134 yards.

He didn't receive much help either, as Stefon Diggs had multiple drops and an offensive line Football Outsiders ranked as the 30th run-blocking unit and 17th pass-blocking group in the league last year allowed two sacks and constant pressure during the first half.

San Francisco deserved plenty of credit for the pressure, as dynamic rookie Reuben Foster thrived with eight tackles for a team apparently stressing its presence up front:

Things opened in the second half with the reserves as the game began to resemble a track meet.

Minnesota climbed back into the game with a touchdown connection from Case Keenum to Rodney Adams before the two teams traded explosive plays. Raheem Mostert took C.J. Beathard's screen 87 yards for a 49ers touchdown, and Minnesota responded when McKinnon ran the subsequent kickoff back for a score and made a statement in the battle to become the Vikings' kick returner:

Mostert was far from done and capped a 13-play, 75-yard drive with a touchdown run to push the lead back to two scores in the closing stretch. He finished with 104 receiving yards, 26 rushing yards and two touchdowns as the best player on the field for extended stretches when the game was still hanging in the balance.

However, Mostert didn't do enough to ward off Minnesota's late comeback, as Keenum's touchdown pass to Kyle Carter pulled the Vikings within a score again and set up Heinicke's winning drive. It took the Vikings 14 plays and a fourth-down conversion to march the 63 yards, but they came through in the final second.

Heinicke will look to parlay his success into another impressive showing Thursday when the Vikings finish their preseason slate against the Miami Dolphins. San Francisco also concludes its preseason Thursday with a contest against the Los Angeles Chargers.