The Minnesota Vikings were vocal in their criticism of San Francisco 49ers rookie defensive end Nick Bosa's hit in the head area of right tackle Brian O'Neill after cornerback Richard Sherman intercepted and returned a Kirk Cousins-thrown pass.

Bosa was flagged for unnecessary roughness, and O'Neill did not return to the game after it was determined he sustained a concussion.


"I didn't see the hit," Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer said when asked after the game about the play. "I just heard (from players that) it was just a cheap shot, which I think it was."

What does Kyle Shanahan think about his rookie defensive star drawing criticism for the play? The 49ers head coach was asked about it on Monday.

"I think people say 'cheap shot' when someone gets hit violently," Shanahan responded. "To me, the word 'cheap shot' means your intent is to try to hurt someone. I don't think he's thinking about that at all.

"I mean, that's a normal block in football, for a long time. The guy wasn't completely out of the play. He was a guy who could have made the tackle, and Bosa went and hit him.

I mean, you can't do that now. You can't hit a guy in that position. You've basically got to set a screen, which means let him hit you, and just take it. That's part of this game, and that's what you've got to do, and that's what we'll coach him up on because you will get a penalty for that.


"But to say it's a cheap shot means you're trying to hurt someone and stuff, and I know that wasn't the case."

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