It’s been a strong start to the season for San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, who has thrown for 492 yards, five touchdowns, and an interception, while completing over 80 percent of his passes.
Purdy, who is coming off a season where he played just nine games, had one of the best statistical games of his career on Sunday against the Miami Dolphins. He completed 20 of 22 passes for 287 yards and two touchdowns, while adding a third on the ground in the 35-13 win.
For years, Purdy has had his
fair share of supporters and detractors, with the discourse mainly revolving around where he ranks among his peers. But as his surrounding environment has continued to change, Purdy has consistently gotten better, with turnovers really being his only blemish.
Now in Year 5 at age 26, are we starting to get in Brock Purdy’s prime?
“Yeah, I think we are just entering it,” John Lynch said on KNBR’s Murph and Mac on Thursday morning. “When you really go back and look at it, Brock’s been pretty damn good from the first time that he got on the field here. He’s been efficient. This is a league where you have to go do it week in and week out. I saw another jump this training camp. The place I see it, I think he’s just playing extremely aggressive football and he always has, but I think he’s ripping the ball. He’s throwing with conviction all the time. Raheem [Morris] came in here, he calls him The Layer King because of his ability to layer the ball over linebackers.
“So probably, people are more accustomed to touch passes with Brock. I think what you’ve seen, think of the ball that he threw to Demarcus [Robinson] in Australia down under. It was down under, but it was over the top, and man, he let that thing go, he did it with such conviction. He’s really throwing the ball, playing with great confidence, great conviction. So, do you see other steps? I have, but he’s been pretty damn good since he’s been here. You just look at the body of work.”
After a solid game against the Los Angeles Rams following an early interception, Purdy was the catalyst of the offense in Week 2, as he missed just two throws, with one of them being a drop.
“The game he played against the Miami Dolphins was darn near flawless,” Lynch added. “We do a game review up top, from young scouts to high-ranking executives, everybody ranks, and the grades he got were just sick. You go back and review them because we want to have a hard standard, and those grades were right. He played that well. And that means his teammates are playing that well. Our offensive line’s protection has been phenomenal here in the first two weeks.
“But Brock is the first to know that you got to go do it every week, but it’s really exciting to see him play this type of football. The one thing, we create a standard like that, now you got to go do it each week, and he knows that and he looks forward to that opportunity.”
Many of Purdy’s detractors have pointed out his arm strength and size versus some of the league’s best quarterbacks. But the 49ers signal-caller has always been an elite anticipator. And, speaking on the Built 4 More podcast, Purdy broke down the value and importance of processing and anticipating, and why it’s made him such a good quarterback.
“My quarterback coach, Brian Griese, the last couple years, he and I talked about that,” Purdy said. “He played 11 years, his dad’s Bob Griese. But we got talking about how really it’s 60/40. You can see about 60 percent of the time, and the other 40 percent you really can’t. I mean, it doesn’t matter how big you are. I’m already shorter in stature, but he goes, that’s why it’s so important when it comes down to knowing coverages, knowing scheme, where our players are supposed to be, how many steps they’re breaking, and where the ball should be over a certain backer. All those things, man, it matters.”
We’ve often seen quarterbacks get hyped with combine performances and pro day throws, but Purdy doesn’t believe that’s the most accurate representation of a game setting.
“And that’s why guys, you know, if you go to a combine and all those things, you’re just throwing on air, and yeah, you look all good with a strong arm and fast, jumping, all that stuff. But when it comes down to 11-on-11 and you got guys that are a foot taller than you and you can’t see, it comes down to the processing.
“Like before the play, I know that this safety is probably going to rotate down. It’s going to be one high, and I got one hitch, no more than that, to rip it where Deebo’s supposed to be, like just inside the hash. And there’s a backer that’s also got a 40-inch vert that I got to put it [over].”
That has been one of Purdy’s best skills as a quarterback, and he’s continued to sharpen his skill set as he grows in the NFL. Entering Year 5 and only 26 years old, the best is yet to come for the 49ers signal-caller.
