Amid criticism of Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk piggybacked on fellow wide receiver Deebo Samuel‘s recent defense of their quarterback.
“Y’all need to stop the DS’n and turn on the tape! That’s everybody,” Aiyuk wrote on his Instagram story. “Everybody.”
Purdy, the final pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, drew criticism from media amid his success despite his lowly draft stature. Criticism ensued during the 49ers’ 24-21 win over the Green Bay Packers in the Divisional Round as Purdy struggled without Samuel on the field.
Posts on ‘X’, formerly Twitter, poked fun at Purdy’s struggles as shared by The 33rd Team. Purdy silenced the naysayers for a moment with a game-winning drive against the Packers, but it continued afterward nonetheless — including a strong statement by ESPN’s Ryan Clark.
That’s where Samuel got involved in defending Purdy, pointing out the game tape from this season. Purdy entered the MVP conversation this season amid 4,280 yards and 31 touchdowns versus 11 interceptions for a 113 quarterback rating.
“Never seen so much hate for a QB that lead the league in almost every category y’all folks be buggin frfr,” Samuel posted on his Instagram story. “That [tape] don’t tell no lies.”
Brock Purdy’s Production in Rain Remains a Concern
While Purdy has mostly thrived on the field, his success in the rain remains an area of concern.
Purdy lost his first rainy game against the Cleveland Browns in October, but he found a way in the latest rain-soaked game against the Packers. Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan addressed the concern on Monday regarding how Purdy handles a wet football.
“I think it did a little bit with I think a couple. Even just watching [Green Bay Packers QB Jordan] Love too,” Shanahan told reporters. “You watch the first play of the game that he had on that swing route, the ball’s slipping, throwing in front of the guy. There’s a couple that got him.”
“So there’s definitely a few that got Brock, a few that he probably just missed trying to throw around a guy so it doesn’t get tipped and a couple that you just can’t explain, that just do happen,” Shanahan continued. “You usually have a couple in the game, but then you add a couple more with weather and a couple more just not being exactly on the throw. He had a few too many of them.”
Brock Purdy Had Some Positives vs. Packers
Purdy didn’t have his best day as he completed 59% of his passes for 252 yards and a touchdown. Shanahan saw few highlights for Purdy besides the game-winning drive.
“He also made some [expletive] of a throws too,” Shanahan said.
“Dropping some of those balls over that middle linebacker to get to [WR] Jauan [Jennings] was unbelievable. The low and away ball to B.A. [WR Brandon Aiyuk] on third down when they had pretty tight coverage on it,” Shanahan added. “It was a [expletive] of a throw and a [expletive] of a catch that kept us out there, after the drop.”
“So, he did a lot of good things too. By no means was he perfect, but it was really cool when we needed him to be at his best, he was. So, it gave us the best chance to win at the end,” Shanahan concluded.
Purdy led a 12-play, 69-yard drive in the end, capped by running back Christian McCaffrey‘s touchdown.
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Brandon Aiyuk Sends Strong Message to Brock Purdy Detractors