San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy may have been the last pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, but head coach Kyle Shanahan understands that that does not matter anymore.
Purdy is coming off of a fantastic sophomore campaign in which he finished fourth in MVP voting and led the 49ers all the way to a Super Bowl appearance, so now, people are going to be expecting big things from him moving forward.
“When do you do that, the standard changes,” Shanahan said, via Eric Edholm of NFL.com. “Right when people see you’re in that club, then they’re gonna try to see where in that club you are. It really never stops. That’s the pressure that is on those guys. It’s why it’s … the most high-paid position, because they’ve got to earn it.”
Purdy threw for 4,280 yards, 31 touchdowns and 11 interceptions while completing 69.4 percent of his passes and posting a league-high passer rating of 113 this past season.
He then guided San Francisco to playoff wins over the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions before ultimately falling to the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl, which was an overtime thriller.
The good news for Purdy is that he will actually have a full offseason to prepare for 2024. Last year, Purdy was recovering from an elbow injury and got a late start as a result.
“He spent it all last year knowing what he had to do, but he was just focusing (on getting) his arm healthy,” Shanahan said. “Now he can go into this offseason knowing what he has to do but training his footwork, training his arm, training his mind. Just getting in the reps.”
Now, Shanahan can’t wait to see what Purdy will have in store for everyone next season.
“Brock’s done that these past two years. He’s been unbelievable,” Shanahan said. “He’s done it week in and week out. He’s come back from a really tough injury in his first year. Had a hell of a year this year. Really hasn’t had an offseason yet with us. … I’m pumped to coach him.”
Purdy certainly has his fair share of detractors, with some labeling him a game manager and others stating that he is merely a product of Kyle Shanahan’s system.
Regardless, Brock Purdy has established himself as the 49ers’ quarterback moving forward, and a whole lot of teams would do almost anything to have that type of stability under center.
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