More MMQB: Jared Goff Always Believed in the Lions—Maybe You Should, Too | Three Deep: Nick Sirianni’s Eagles Are Connecting and Accelerating at the Right Time | Six From Saturday: An NFL Scout’s Evaluation of Heisman Trophy Winner Caleb Williams
The 49ers actually do believe in Brock Purdy. And, yes, it sounds weird to say that. But I’ve asked around enough. The confidence in the seventh-round pick in that building is real. It doesn’t mean he’s going to be the next Tom Brady. But in an NFL where the sky is usually falling for a team that has its quarterback go down (let alone its first two QBs), that’s most decidedly not happening in San Francisco.
And the proof is in how the first 30 minutes of Sunday’s game played out …
• The 49ers outscored the Buccaneers 28–0.
• They outgained them 290–111.
• They had 19 first downs to Tampa Bay’s five.
• Purdy was 14-of-18 for 185 yards and two touchdowns.
The rest of the game, well, might as well have been on a running clock. Purdy was 2-of-5 for zero yards in the second half, mostly because it was time for the 49ers to close the playbook and mitigate risks as much as possible (particularly after Deebo Samuel got hurt) the rest of the way. But by then, we’d all seen plenty from Purdy—and 49ers players would swear what they were watching was just an extension of a lot of things they’d already seen.
“Man, you don’t come in and play that well and be that prepared by just starting in Week 13,” left tackle Trent Williams told me postgame. “For us, it was definitely not a surprise. In the NFL, it’s all about getting the opportunity. He got his opportunity. He made the most of it. He showed us everything that we’ve seen since camp.”
So what was that?
It was a two-yard touchdown run right up the gut in the first quarter. It was a 27-yard, back-shoulder(ish) throw to Christian McCaffrey. It was getting the ball to Brandon Aiyuk just in the nick of time—at the end of first half—before the rush got there and coverage closed on Aiyuk for a 32-yard touchdown. It was running the ball on third down when his team needed him. And it was avoiding turnovers.
It was playing well enough that the team could afford for his last snap to be taken with 14:20 left. And it all happened because Purdy was more than ready for the moment.
“I mean, you could just tell how smart he was,” Williams says. “He’s a pro-style quarterback and was lucky to not have to play in those quarterback-friendly systems in college, which in my opinion kinda stunts the growth for these players. You can tell he was coached really well. Mechanics are very good. And we’ve seen that in camp early. The decision-making, confidence, placement on the ball, knowing where to go with the ball. That’s something he’s been showing.”
What doesn’t hurt, of course, is what’s around Purdy. Williams said that Samuel told him postgame he’s gonna be O.K.—“even if he’s gotta sit a game or two, we need him back for this run, and we’re gonna get him back”—and so long as that’s the case, there may not be a better situation for a quarterback in the league.
The Niners’ already elite run game goes to another level with McCaffrey (14 carries, 119 yards Sunday), the passing game has the game’s best all-around tight end (George Kittle); its most versatile receiver (Samuel); a very viable, and fast, more traditional receiver (Brandon Aiyuk); and, of course, McCaffrey, too. Add Williams’s group to that mix, and San Francisco doesn’t need to ask the world of Purdy.
Even if, as a certain nickname would indicate, he’s ready to take on whatever they asked.
Which is why the Niners aren’t as worried about their situation despite others having concerns.
“It’s pretty much just operating like it’s another day at the office, man,” Williams says. “Like I said, Brock is not surprising anybody in this locker room. We’ve been able to see him since OTAs. We’ve been able to kinda get a feel for him. He’s a great player, man, so none of this surprises us. It’s just another day at the office.”
A good one, too.
Watch 49ers games live with fuboTV: Start a free trial today.
