Brock Purdy outlook
By: Jake Rajala
Brock Purdy has been a flat out winner. Mr. Irrelevant went 12-4 in 2023. Time will tell if Purdy and the offensive wiz Kyle Shanahan will follow in the footsteps of Bill Walsh and Joe Montana and win a few Lombardi trophies. At least time is on Purdy’s side, as he’s 25 years old.
Purdy has unleashed 69 passing touchdowns to 31 interceptions. His best season arrived in 2023, where he threw 31 TDs to 11 ints. He had a bit of a dip in 2024, as he threw 20 TDs to 12 ints. Interestingly, they thought it was wise to ship away the swiss army knife Deebo Samuel after a drop in Purdy’s performance.
Right now, Purdy has to face some adversity. He’s 1-1 and he’s thrown 2 TDs to 2 ints. Mac Jones is even arguably playing better than him. PFF has given him a grade of 66.7, which is floating around the middle of the pack.
Purdy is week to week with his toe injury. It’s unclear when he will return. Thankfully, he doesn’t have a rich history of injuries in the NFL. He also doesn’t run the ball enough to take silly hits.
With that enunciated, a fascinating question surrounds him: What is the value of Purdy?
Honestly, I wouldn’t trade him for anything short than numerous first round picks. He’s a young cat (25 years old) and he’s in a golden fit. It may also be wise to acquire a QB and a first round pick for Purdy. I believe the 49ers will draft a WR early in 2026. They will want to be able to put up fireworks against a team like Detroit (or even LAR).
The future Hall of Famer Christian McCaffrey should be an elite back for at least a few more seasons. Ricky Pearsall was a 2024 first round pick. George Kittle still has a few seasons left in the tank, and we still haven’t seen Brandon Aiyuk suit up this season. They have Trent Williams at left tackle, but I expect him to retire after this season. Hell, even wide receiver Kendrick Bourne had an 100 yard day last Thursday.
Shanny doesn’t have a WR like Julio Jones anymore (as he had Julio as the OC in Atlanta). He needs to spread it out and help his QB adjust to the best matchups throughout the game.
The 49ers are paying Purdy a lot of money. They can’t trade him after he’s only had two starts this season. Mac Jobs would have to be noticeably better than Purdy to start. They could trade Jones for a couple of middle round picks. Jones is also quite young. I don’t believe this situation is like Steve Young behind Montana. Nonetheless, they both have Pro Bowl ability.
Purdy is also on a team that carries an elite defense. The former DPOY Nick Bosa suffered a torn ACL, but he should still have a very long career. The 49ers still have Fred Warner, who is arguably the best MLB. Their defense helped them beat the LA Rams, who arguably have a Top-5 offense.
Purdy reminds me a lot of the young Patriots QB Drake Maye. They both are consistent and accurate in the short passing game. Maye and Purdy can make impressive throws when the plays break down, too. Maye seem to favor running to the right side of the field against Buffalo.
I believe Purdy can average better stats than last season due to a healthy CMAC. It’s exciting that Pearsall is improving, but CMAC is the former OPOY. They have the 4-1 throne waiting for Purdy. If he plays the way he performed as a sophomore, the 49ers should go far. If he plays his best football of his career, they should be able to have a chance to win it all for the first time in the Shanahan era.
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