Hyde’s big night lifts 49ers to opening win

Associated Press

SANTA CLARA, Calif.

Alex Boone is taking at least a little credit for Carlos Hyde’s breakout game on the NFL’s big stage.

“Somebody owes me a steak. Seriously,” cracked Boone, the left guard who helped clear the way.

With franchise rushing leader Frank Gore long gone to the Colts, Hyde quickly showed the San Francisco 49ers still have a reliable power runner. He scored touchdowns on runs of 17 and 10 yards and finished with 168 yards rushing on 26 carries to lead the Niners to a 20-3 victory against the Minnesota Vikings in Jim Tomsula’s debut as head coach minus the interim status he had for the final game of 2010.

Hyde wanted to outplay the better-known No. 28 on the field, Adrian Peterson. He did that and more.

“That was also in the back of my head, to outdo a guy who’s been leading the NFL in rushing. That’s tremendous to outdo a guy like that, Adrian Peterson, a great running back,” Hyde said. “I used to watch his highlights. To be able to outrush him, that’s great.”

Now, Hyde is the league’s leading rusher. Even if it’s only a small sample size.

Peterson ran 10 times for 31 yards playing his first game in more than a year following paid leave and then a suspension last year in the fallout from a child-abuse case against him in Texas.

SHAKING OFF THE RUST

Peterson hadn’t played since Week 1 of 2014 at St. Louis, so there were some adjustments to make on the fly.

He didn’t get his first carry until the second series. He is eager to study film to see what worked and what didn’t go so well.

“I felt a little hesitant a couple of times coming out of the shotgun,” he said. “I couldn’t really get into a rhythm. ... It felt good to get back out there with the guys. It was good to get the cobwebs off, so to speak. It felt good to play football and take some hits.”

HAYNE’S DEBUT

Former Australian rugby league star Jarryd Hayne would rather forget his first NFL touch.

The 27-year-old rookie lost the fumble on a punt return in the first quarter when he misjudged the ball and had to dive forward to try to field it. He made a 1-yard run in the second quarter and caught a 7-yard pass.

Hayne was forced into running back duties as the only active backup after Reggie Bush was lost to a left calf injury with about 6 1/2 minutes left in the first quarter. Tomsula didn’t consider it serious.