Assessment of 49ers Quarterback Brock Purdy during Bye Week

The 49ers have a week off, so let’s grade them position by position based solely on what they’ve done this season, and let’s start with the quarterback.

POSITION: Quarterback

NAME: Brock Purdy

FIGURE: B plus

NOTES: For the first time in his career it was not so easy for him. Christian McCaffrey hasn’t played yet and Brandon Aiyuk recently tore his knee. Suddenly the windows are smaller. And the book on Purdy is more advanced because he is in his third season as a starter. So he’s seeing a lot more man-to-man coverage than he has in the past because everyone knows he’s shredding zone coverage. To his credit, he finds ways to beat people’s coverage, usually by scrambling – he’s evolved into an incredibly aggressive runner when he gets a lane. And he almost never gets hit when he runs. So the more he clambers, the better.

But as a passer he is having a decidedly mediocre season. Through eight games, he has 10 touchdown passes and seven interceptions — those are Jimmy Garoppolo numbers. It’s important to remember that Garoppolo’s performance continued to deteriorate after losing the Super Bowl with the 49ers. Is the same thing happening to Purdy? Is the competition catching up with him?

We know Purdy is a harder worker and a better athlete than Garoppolo, but is he a better passer than him? Or will Purdy’s limitations on human coverage ultimately limit his potential?

We’ll find out.

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