Getty Brock Purdy is a franchise quarterback, according to Bleacher Report.
San Francisco 49ers fans may not think that quarterback Brock Purdy is the future under center since he has lost three games, but that doesn’t mean the 49ers will go in a different direction in 2024.
Bleacher Report’s Ryan Fowler sees just the opposite in light of rumors that Purdy wouldn’t survive in San Francisco. Fowler described Purdy as the 49ers’ “most promising young building block” for squad building.
“No matter how you see the 49ers, Brock Purdy remains an important building block for the future [head coach] Kyle Shanahan,” Fowler wrote. “He won’t win any ‘talented’ awards or take over an offense like many of the game’s elite players can, but he is efficient, understands what he’s trying to do and has consistently put the Niners in a position to win games. “
San Francisco took Purdy, known as Mr. Irrelevant, with the last pick in the 2022 NFL Draft out of Iowa State. Purdy shined when his number was called for the first time following an injury to former Niners quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, and that continued into 2023, but Purdy has struggled in the 49ers’ recent slide.
Shanahan, general manager John Lynch and the 49ers players all expressed their support for Purdy during the recent loss. Purdy completed 67.8% of his passes for 3,407 yards and 35 touchdowns versus nine interceptions in 17 career games.
When those numbers are extrapolated to a single season, such as the 2022 campaign, Purdy ranks in the top 10 for completion percentage and touchdowns this year. Despite the challenges of 2023, Purdy ranks in the top 10 in completion percentage and 11th in yards and touchdowns.
Brock Purdy: “It was huge to clear my head”
During the 49ers’ bye week, Purdy returned to Iowa and helped on his fiancé’s family farm. Whether it was driving a tractor or spending time with his future spouse and in-laws, he said it helped him get a mental break from recent struggles on the field.
“Yes, it’s huge. When you look at the good and the bad of the first half, how hot we started, and then of course the last three games, you’re like, “Okay, what’s going on?” What could we be better at? For me especially, it was huge,” Purdy told reporters on Thursday, November 9th.
“But the opportunity to step away from the game, take a breather, understand where we are and what we need to do was hugely important for me, to clear my head and then come back looking forward to the second half for the good stretch Football we have to play. So I feel good,” Purdy added.
Purdy and the 49ers will look to get back on track in Week 10 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, a team riding a five-game winning streak.
Brock Purdy reveals what he told his teammates after the Bengals’ loss
Purdy took charge in the locker room after the 49ers suffered a third straight loss in Week 8, a 31-17 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
“Yeah, I just admit to turning the ball over,” Purdy told reporters Thursday. “How much time and effort everyone puts into this whole thing – the organization, the coaches, the players, everyone plays hard, there’s no doubt about it, no doubt about it. I just wanted the team face to face to know and hear from their own experience that I need to get better.”
“I own up to the mistakes I made and at certain points in the game I have to be smart with the ball,” Purdy continued. “The quarterback is one of the most trusted players in the organization because we get the ball in our hands every play to make a decision. So I just own it and understand that I have to get better. So I just tell the guys it came from the heart and that’s it.”
Matthew Davis covers the NFL for Heavy.com, focusing on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots and San Francisco 49ers. He has also covered prep sports in Minnesota as a writer for the StarTribune since 2016. More about Matthew Davis