Second-year quarterback Brock Purdy has already enjoyed a lot of NFL success. His record remains unblemished in regular-season games and any game in which he stayed healthy. Purdy can improve to 10-0 as a regular-season starter with a win against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday night.
Purdy's season passer rating of 115.1 is currently the highest in the NFL, surpassing even MVP contender Tua Tagovailoa of the Miami Dolphins (114.4). His worst passer rating (87.4) came in last season's playoff bout with the Cowboys, a slugfest of a game that the 49ers ultimately won 19-12.
On Thursday, San Francisco's quarterback was asked if that might have been his most challenging game.
"Yeah, honestly, I'd say so," Purdy responded. "They were a really good defense and, like I said, there were times where just the pass rush or my rhythm, something just felt off in that game. And they did a good job of just getting me offset with some little things and just sort of made me rush some things. And I feel like I didn't get in a good rhythm to process just what we had going on.
"So, there were some areas in there where I could definitely be better at. And so yeah, it's one of those games where I got to be smart with the ball, like in the playoff game, had to be smart with it, thought we did well with that."
Aware of the challenges posed by the Cowboys' defense, Purdy aims for a better outing on Sunday night. He's determined to avoid repeating the performance of what he considers one of his toughest games, which remained deadlocked at 9-9 heading into the fourth quarter of the defensive showdown.
"Yeah, it was obviously a fourth-quarter game," Purdy said. "It was a very physical game. They did a good job of what they do up front, stopping the run and getting in on some pass plays and stuff, and disrupting just the rhythm of some of our concepts and the rhythm of myself and dropping back. So those are things we saw.
"They're a good defense. They do some really good things up front. Secondary is really good, too. And so yeah, just looking at that game and sort of just putting ourselves back into what was at stake, as a playoff game, just the rivalry of the organizations and understanding what's at stake for this Sunday, too."
More than just bragging rights hang in the balance. Levi's Stadium will serve as a proving ground, with Sunday's victor claiming the title of the NFC's finest, alongside the Philadelphia Eagles.
Purdy is expecting another slugfest. Each possession will hold substantial weight. Last season, San Francisco only managed to find the end zone once, courtesy of a fourth-quarter run by Christian McCaffrey.
Said Purdy: "In this kind of game, when you got two really good defenses on both sides of the ball, it's like, man, how can you eliminate the turnovers, play smart, and when you get in the red zone, execute and be willing to actually score touchdowns. Obviously, the field goals are great, and getting points are great, but to win these kind of games, man, we got to score touchdowns."
