Oh, Brock Purdy. Your opponents are lining up.
The community of Purdy Truthers can smell the validation. They prayed for times like these. Their claim all along has been that you, the quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers, have been all hype, that you didn’t belong in the company of the game’s elite. They say you just, well, Youbecause of the superstars around you. They wanted to demote you to a lower level and put you well behind Dak Prescott, Baker Mayfield and them.
Oh, you better know they’re watching and waiting. And hope. For your downfall.
They’re sitting up in their seats, Brock. Eagerly rubbing their hands, drooling after you couldn’t beat your previous backup Sunday in Minnesota. Their eyes, filled with joyful anticipation, are on you, No. 13. They are waiting to see how you respond to this season’s mounting adversities.
Christian McCaffrey is already on injured reserve. Your offensive line is struggling in pass protection, even legend Trent Williams, who missed all of training camp due to a contract extension. Brandon Aiyuk, who also missed all of camp, estimated he was at about 85 percent.
Now Deebo Samuel is out.
“Yeah, when you lose really good players, it’s always tough,” coach Kyle Shanahan said. “But it happens all over the league, and it’s a big part of this league and a big part of this game. We have to deal with it.”
Let’s keep it real, Purdy. You are no longer the same without Samuel. The 49ers with you at quarterback are 0-3 in meaningful games where Deebo doesn’t take at least half the offensive snaps. Your offense has averaged 17 points per game in those games.
The Purdy Truthers have not let that go. A trip to the Super Bowl, MVP-caliber stats and consistent feedback from the superstars around you: nothing has curbed the criticism.
They call you a trust fund quarterback, a signal caller with a silver spoon. They still say your football career started in field goal range and you know nothing about the struggle. They say you can’t do what people like Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen can do: put a team on your shoulders, be the reason your team wins, and not only facilitate a loaded roster but also overcome the holes in the lineup.
This is about as close as you’ve gotten to that scenario. Even with the revelation that Jordan Mason has been as RB1, a lineup without McCaffrey and Samuel certainly lowers the fear factor on the defense. Which tends to increase their self-confidence and aggressiveness. Especially when you consider how vulnerable you have been to loss of sales in the first few weeks. You only get two in the first two weeks, but enough near-interceptions to make a defense hungry.
You can shut them up now, though Brock. Okay, maybe they shouldn’t shut up. Beating the 0-2 Los Angeles Rams and beating the New England Patriots and Arizona Cardinals at home won’t silence the crowd. But losing one of those matches will certainly raise the fever.
It doesn’t matter how many dimes you throw. Or how big your numbers get. They still see it every time you make a questionable throw, or look a little lost, or miss a target. And the defense is getting better at figuring out how to give you problems.
It seemed like the Vikings, in the game we won’t talk about, picked up a few trends that the Baltimore Ravens introduced last Christmas. Anticipate and jump on the timing routes and apply pressure in random places – all designed to make you feel rushed and frantic, which is when you are most prone to mistakes.
“No, I think that’s the point of the plan,” Shanahan explained. “The point is that there are six guys on the line and they come from everywhere. … There’s just a lot of pressure on a quarterback during a game. That’s their plan. They will make you think every play if you are hot, and if not, you have to find the open zones. There are a lot of open zones, but the way they slow you down is tricky. … (Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores) knows how to mix it up really well, and that’s the challenge for a quarterback. It makes it difficult to get into the rhythm.”
The Vikings’ aggressive defense kept Brock Purdy and the 49ers offense in check on Sunday. (Adam Bettcher/Getty Images)
When you told Flores after the game that his “plan is crazy,” the Purdy Truthers didn’t see it as a young QB who appreciated being challenged. They didn’t see it as a game recognition game, but as a sign that you would dive into the film to learn from it. No, they saw it as some kind of confession that you were overwhelmed.
That’s why you won’t be able to lay an egg for the next few weeks. Well, you can. Because there are no Super Bowls won in September. Sure, it would put the 49ers in a tough spot, and perhaps even cost them a home game in the NFC Championship, should you make it. But your team is perfectly capable of acting late and peaking at the right time.
So you can’t lay an egg because you can’t give the opponents more food. Honestly, you have a legion fighting for you on the interwebs. There are plenty of them rocking with you, Brock, and they need you to shut everyone up.
You still have George Kittle. You still have Mason and the power running game. You still have Aiyuk, who has a big game to play.
“There were a couple of times where he had a really good chance to get the ball,” Shanahan said of Aiyuk, “and a couple of times the protections on two of them failed. One time someone broke a route and came in the same way, so they kept it hidden. But he had a chance to catch about four big passes and there were other factors at play. It’s a team game. There are eleven guys involved in getting someone the ball. He did get some chances where he should have, but not everything went well.”
You have enough to win. You have enough to lead your team through this difficult period. This was always in the cards. Getting back to the Super Bowl is a tall order. And NFL teams are like crabs in a bucket. This was always going to be difficult.
Still necessary. This is the hardship they said you couldn’t handle. This is the cape they say is too heavy for your shoulders. They don’t believe you’re one of them, Brock.
You better show them.
GO DEEPER
Nothing comes easy for Brock Purdy as Brandon Aiyuk tries to find the 49ers’ offense
(Top photo of Brock Purdy during Sunday’s game against the Vikings: Stephen Maturen / Getty Images)