Brock Purdy didn't throw an interception in the San Francisco 49ers' first five games of the season. All those games were victories. The team has since lost three consecutive games, and the quarterback has tossed five passes to opposing defenses during that stretch, with two in each of the last two games.
Fair or not, the quarterback often shoulders the blame when a team underperforms, and much of the recent scrutiny surrounding Purdy is due to those costly miscues during the losing streak.
However, within the 49ers organization, confidence in the second-year quarterback remains steadfast. The team remains optimistic about bouncing back from their recent struggles, with Purdy playing a pivotal role in turning their fortunes around.
John Lynch sat down with NBC Sports Bay Area this week and discussed his young quarterback, highlighting his unwavering belief in the 23-year-old.
"I think the most impressive thing is Brock's accountability," Lynch recently told NBC Sports Bay Area. "Brock is an accountable guy, and he wants better. But I think he's played some of his best football within this three-game losing streak as well. But a quarterback, it's just like everything in our league. It's 60 minutes, and you've got to finish the game, and ultimately, you can't turn the ball over. Brock understands that."
It's easy to forget that Purdy has yet to start a full season's worth of games. He entered the league as a relative unknown, buried on the 49ers' depth chart, yet demonstrated composure when unexpectedly thrust into the starting role last year due to injuries to Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo.
It's also easy to forget that Purdy returned this season following a significant surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his right elbow.
"I think we all have to go back to where Brock started at this year, a pretty miraculous comeback to do what he's done," Lynch continued. "[I] couldn't be more proud of the way he's approached it.
"We have so much belief in that young man. It's real, it's authentic, and we believe, just like we believe our team's going to come back, that we're going to come back and play to our standard, and Brock's going to be right at the lead of that charge. There's a lot of confidence and belief that that will happen."