Getty Brock Purdy throwing for the San Francisco 49ers in Week 16.
Brock Purdy officially remains undefeated as a starter for the San Francisco 49ers. Despite playing through a pretty nasty rib/oblique injury that has limited his ability to fully practice during the week, Purdy has thrown multiple touchdowns in his first three starts, a feat only three other rookie quarterbacks have accomplished since 1950, and his on-field confidence has only skyrocketed as a result.
Asked about his increasing comfort level with each passing week under center, Purdy credited his mentality for his ability to take his opportunity in stride.
“Honestly, I just take it as I have a challenge every single week and I have to do it to the best of my ability,” Purdy said. “I don’t really think about, or I’m getting, you know, more and more comfortable or anything like that. I still have that same fire and drive as before I was playing, you know? Like, I wanna go in and I wanna prove to my teammates and earn the respect every play, every snap, every drive, that kinda mentality. I just gotta remind myself to not lose that passion, that fire, and that it’s never easy, every single game, doesn’t matter who we’re playing, it’s never easy. So, that’s where I’m at with that.”
With just 210 professional offensive snaps under his belt heading into Week 16, Purdy’s professional experience is growing with leaps and bounds with each passing week. Fortunately, his initial success hasn’t worn off just yet, as Purdy completed 15 of his 22 passes for 234 yards and two touchdowns versus just one interception. If Purdy can continue to rehab his oblique and avoid any setbacks in the process, the 49ers could continue to get better down the stretch.
Brock Purdy’s Injuries are Healing up
Asked about how his body felt during the game against the Washington Commanders, Purdy provided an update on his status that should make fans very happy indeed.
“Honestly, I think I did feel a little bit more against Seattle, so there were some movements, like certain weird movements that I would, you know, feel my rib and whatnot, but, for this game, I felt great, honestly. You know, going into the game, and did well with the treatment and everything this whole week leading up to it, and so, I did feel better, you know, on the run, especially going to my left and everything, so yeah, I think if coach would’ve called that kind of stuff in Seattle, too, I would have made it happen, either way, so, it’s part of the game.”
After taking a nasty hit in Week 14 that landed Purdy on the injury report for the past two weeks, it’s nice to hear that the Iowa State product is feeling a lot better on the field, as it should open up what Shanahan is able to call moving forward.
Asked about how Purdy’s improvements from Week 15 to 16 affected his playcalling during his own media session, Shanahan admitted that one play was available to him that wasn’t the week prior.
“Just going into the game, I thought I could call keepers both ways,” Shanahan said. “If there was a sneak opportunity, felt alright with that. Besides that, it was about the same, though.”
With Purdy feeling better with each passing week and becoming more of a known commodity to everyone across the NFL landscape, Shanahan, too, is starting to be more comfortable with his rookie quarterback both on and off the field.
Shanahan on his Comfort Level With the 49ers QB
If Purdy is starting to feel more comfortable under center for the 49ers, then so too is Shanahan, who was asked how the continuity of having the same quarterback under center since Week 13 has affected San Francisco’s preparation.
“Yeah, definitely,” Shanahan said. “I mean, I think he was always doing a command from the beginning, but once you go through these weeks, it’s not just the games, but also just getting used to how he is on a Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, the whole routine of the week, meetings, everything, and starting to talk to guys. They just, they get more used to the guy, and it’s been fun.”
While fans see what Purdy produces on the field week in and week out, his efforts on the practice field and at meetings are a big part of playing quarterback in the NFL. If Shanahan is becoming more comfortable with what Purdy needs throughout the week and understands how he prepares ahead of a start, it should only help the 49ers to tune things up before the playoffs begin in January.
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