By Leonardo Ramirez
Sports Columnist
Welp, it couldn’t have been drawn up any better than this. The 49ers just put together a season that every fan donning the red and gold will remember. This team just refused to stop rolling despite the adversity they’ve faced all season. Smoothly cruising into the postseason on a ten-game winning streak, the Niners secured the two seed on a perfect record against their division for the first time in about 25 years. Before I get into what went down in Levi stadium, let’s take a look at Brock Purdy’s first five career starts:
16/21, 185 total yards, 2 pass TDs, 1 rush TD, 0 INT, on a 134.0 passer rating vs The Buccaneers ( 7-35)
17/26, 217 total yards, 2 pass TDs, 0 INT on a 117.0 passer rating vs The Seahawks (21-13)
15/22, 234 total yards, 2 pass TDs, 1 INT, on a 114.6 passer rating vs The Commanders (21-37)
22/35, 284 total yards, 2 pass TDs, on a 95.4 passer rating vs the Raiders (34-37)
15/20 178 total yards, 3 pass TDs, on a 141.2 passer rating vs The Cardinals (38-13)
Racking up 1,080 total passing yards, 12 TOT TDs, and went 5-0 in his first five NFL career starts. Pretty impressive for a third-string rookie quarterback that did not expect to see the field at the start of the season.
“Mr. Irrelevant” is putting together a strong case that he could be a dependable quarterback in the NFL. Purdy continues to win over the trust of his locker room over his skilled play. Not to mention that he has been facing more pressure than ever in previous games. Purdy got sacked four times on Sunday but still recorded a nearly perfect game, completing 15 of 20 of his dropbacks with three pass drops, on top of three pass touchdowns, and zero turnovers on a 141.2 passer rating.
Purdy’s ability to change his release point and arm slot to deliver an accurate ball in face of pressure is unteachable and an extremely special thing to have in a quarterback. Purdy was also able to clean up the struggling red zone offense he inherited from his predecessor Jimmy Garopollo. One way Purdy has improved the offense is through his telekinetic connection with George Kittle, boosting Kittle’s season-high TD season to the double-digits with two beautiful dots in the endzone. Purdy can finish drives with touchdowns, unlike Garoppolo who would more often than not settle for three points.
Since Purdy entered for the injured Garroppolo way back in week 14, he’s averaged the highest passer rating in the league:
Brock Purdy: 119.0
Jared Goff: 112.0
Patrick Mahomes: 105.9
Purdy is also ranked first in almost every QB statistic since starting:
Pass Rating: 119.0 1st
Pass TD: 11 t-1st
pass TD/Att: 8.9 1st
Pass Yds/Att: 8.85 1st
Wins: 5 t-1st
Now, it’s very hard to be negative or critical at this point because they have not only won ten in a row but they have destroyed the majority of the teams they played during this run. I recently saw a stat saying that based on the opponent’s win percentage, the 49ers have played the weakest schedule in the NFL this season. Their opponents went 120-168-1, that’s a .412 win percentage. The Niners have been facing weak teams, yes, but they are embarrassing these teams, with a third-string quarterback! I bet the Dolphins or the Ravens wish they could say the same.
Purdy leads the NFL in passing TDs, passer rating, and yards per attempt. Now what I say might sound provocative but I believe this hasn’t been all because of Purdy. We have to take into account that Kyle Shanahan is putting together one of his best years as a head coach. When talking about Purdy’s success you almost certainly need to take into account Kyle’s brilliant playcalling and making it as easy as possible for Purdy. Statistically, the 49ers run the most dominant offense in the league period. And when the offense clicks with Purdy under center, it’s unstoppable.
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