Brock

Purdy

Both Lynch and Kyle Shanahan used qualified language but the intent appears clear; they want to sign Purdy to a long-term deal soon. Lynch referred to Purdy as “our guy,” saying, they “have interest in Brock being around here for a long, long time.” Shanahan took it a step further by saying he plans on Purdy remaining a 49er for the duration of Shanahan’s own tenure and even went so far as to say they are “capable of winning the Super Bowl with” Purdy. It sounds like the 49ers may have learned from past mistakes and will at least attempt to sign Purdy to a reasonable long-term extension well before the 2025 season begins. Throwing passes to a banged-up receiving corps, Purdy produced a respectable stat line, completing 300-of-455 passes for 3,864 yards, 20 touchdowns and 12 interceptions and rushed 66 times for 323 yards and five touchdowns.

Of course, the reality of the situation is that the 49ers often take their time on these huge extensions. Nick Bosa and Brandon Aiyuk are recent examples that lingered well into training camp and almost to the start of the season. “If that’s an opportunity to be able to get that done quick, that’d be great. Just so we can get back for phase one,” Purdy said. The 49ers don’t have a huge cap hit to shed ahead of free agency by extending Purdy, so they probably don’t have a lot of incentive to hurry this along. But it should get done at some point this offseason.

Speaking on KNBR 680 on Friday, Lynch said of Purdy’s injury, “It’s nothing more than when you hit your funny bone. When you get an NFL helmet in the wrong place, it irritates the nerve.” He later added that Purdy “is going to be fine.” Purdy has already been ruled out for Week 18’s game against the Cardinals out of precaution, but it sounds like there’s little to be concerned about at this point in time.

Josh Dobbs will start and Brandon Allen will serve as his backup. Purdy suffered the right elbow injury late in Week 17 against the Lions and did not return. Though there hasn’t been any indication that it’s a major issue, the 49ers have nothing to play for in Week 18, giving them no reason to throw Purdy out there. His season ends with 3,864 yards, 20 touchdowns, and 12 picks. He also rushed for 323 yards and five scores. Purdy had a reputation as a button-pusher heading into 2024. He excelled within the Kyle Shanahan system, but his ability to create out of structure was modest at best. With injuries to all of his major pass-catchers plus an offensive line that took a step back, Purdy made the most of a bad situation more often than not. That, however, wasn’t always the case. Purdy gave up awful interceptions in the fourth quarter of his final three games, all of which were losses. He will need to clean up the mistakes heading into 2025, but a few bad throws shouldn’t prevent the 49ers from committing to him long-term. He is due for an extension in the offseason and should get it sooner rather than later.

Purdy sustained a right elbow contusion and nerve inflammation, but the injury has “no long-term implications.” Shanahan said the team is unsure if Josh Dobbs or Brandon Allen will start at quarterback against the Cardinals in Week 18. This is great news for Purdy, who likely finishes the season with a 3864/20/12 passing line. It was clearly not the season he had in 2023, but Purdy was able to play well in an offense stuffed with less-exciting players and took more chances down the field. Heading into the final year of his rookie contract, much of the offseason noise about Purdy will likely be about his impending contract extension.

Purdy said after the game that he got hit on the backside of his elbow, and that his arm was “on fire.” He couldn’t throw on the sideline after that, making just a few half-hearted attempts before putting the ball down. Josh Dobbs took over and sure sounds to be in line to make a Week 18 start for the 49ers against Arizona. Initial tests showed that Purdy’s UCL ligament is intact. 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan called it a “nerve issue” after the game.

The 49ers took a 21-13 lead into the half after going toe-to-toe with the then 13-2 Lions before Detroit flipped the script after the break. Purdy set a career high with 377 pass yards but two costly second half interceptions allowed the Lions to sneak out of the Bay Area with a victory. Purdy was injured on the team’s final possession of the game on a two-minute drive, after which Joshua Dobbs and led the team to a touchdown with under a minute to play. The team would fail to recover an onside kick, ending the game. The six-point losing margin also looks worse when you consider 49ers’ kicker Jake Moody missed two field goals and an extra point in the contest. Either way, the 49ers drop to 6-10 at the tail end of a disappointing season, with Purdy’s late injury potentially resulting in a Dobbs start to end the season in Week 18 with the team on a short week. If Purdy’s season ended today, the former Mr. Irrelevant finishes 2024 with 3,864 yards, 20 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions.

Purdy was looking for an interception early and often in this game with a handful of ill-advised and misplaced attempts throughout the contest. All of the miscues made it to the ground until the team’s penultimate drive when Purdy tossed a game-sealing pick. He attempted to hit Jauan Jennings over the middle of the field but the pass was easily cut off by cornerback Kader Kohou. It’s the second week in a row that Purdy found a defender late in the game. Purdy has generally played well this year despite the pristine situation of 2023 falling apart around him, but his mistakes have caught up with him over the past two weeks. He will look to get back on track versus the Lions in Week 17. Purdy will sneak into the QB1 ranks for the final week of the fantasy season.

Ugly. Purdy and the passing game was hurt by the rain — particularly in the first half — and he should have had a touchdown pass if not for a heinous drop by Deebo Samuel. Still, this was a very ineffective effort for the 24-year-old quarterback, and he missed on several throws. The biggest miss was the most costly; as he overthrew his target by 10-plus yards while San Francisco was in field goal range, and the pass was intercepted by Darius Williams. Purdy is back on the field in Week 16 against the Dolphins. It can’t go worse than this.

Purdy carved up the Bears’ defense on the 49ers’ first drive, hitting Isaach Guerendo and George Kittle for explosive gains before finding Jauan Jennings for a seven-yard score, establishing the theme for Week 14. Purdy experienced a brief injury scare when he was clotheslined on a sack but missed just one play. It would be unsurprising to see him show up on next week’s injury report with a sore neck but he should be good to go as a QB1 against the Rams.