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The San Francisco 49ers expect big things from third-year quarterback
Brock Purdy in the upcoming season. The team continues to boast one of the most talented rosters in the NFL and is coming off a Super Bowl appearance. During an impressive 2023 campaign, Purdy set a single-season franchise record with 4,280 passing yards, surpassing all the former greats who have played for the organization.
The goal for 2024 is clear: win the Super Bowl. To achieve that, the 49ers will need another stellar year from Purdy. One NFL scout believes San Francisco will get just that, making a bold prediction for the upcoming season.
"I think Brock Purdy will turn in his best season yet. He's going to win the MVP award this season," the scout recently
told NFL Analysis Network.
The prediction might not be as jaw-dropping as it initially seems. For several weeks last season, Purdy was seen as the front-runner for the coveted NFL MVP award. That ended on Christmas night when Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens dismantled the eventual NFC champions. Jackson went on to take home the award, while Purdy came close to leading his team to a Super Bowl victory.
Adding an MVP award to his resume would earn Purdy a bigger payday next year. The quarterback will be eligible for a contract extension and is already predicted to become one of the highest-paid players in the NFL.
Purdy benefits from being surrounded by a superb cast of playmakers, including
Brandon Aiyuk,
Deebo Samuel,
Christian McCaffrey, and
George Kittle. The team even provided the 24-year-old quarterback with another target this offseason, drafting wide receiver Ricky Pearsall with the No. 31 overall pick.
Purdy also benefits from his first full offseason with the 49ers, having spent his rookie offseason buried on the depth chart and most of last year's offseason recovering from surgery.
"Last year, he had to do it, and then it would just be frustrating for him because he couldn't really go work on it," head coach
Kyle Shanahan told reporters this week. "He had to just visualize and think about it, and had to wait for that opportunity in training camp. This year, right away, it's been awesome for him to lead us through the whole offseason, just drill-wise and everything. He's been great to have for a first full offseason."
Purdy is still finding his footing and gaining confidence within the system. Remarkably, there remains room for growth despite the significant success the young quarterback has already achieved in such a short time.
"I just think with the playbook and the play calls and all that kind of stuff, it feels a little bit smoother," Purdy stated. "It registers in my mind a lot quicker. When I go out there, I know what we're doing. Now it's, 'Where can I get the ball to the right guy faster?' And so, sort of just processing those kinds of things helps.
"At quarterback, you can obviously continue to work on your arm strength and all that kind of stuff, but I think just the way you process, the way you go through reads, you can't get enough reps. And so, that's where I'm at. Watching the game tape, coming into practice, and running those plays right now during OTAs, for me, is huge."
We are unlikely to hear any updates on the contract standoff between the San Francisco 49ers and wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk until training camp begins late next month. Aiyuk signaled his dissatisfaction with the negotiation progress by skipping last week's mandatory minicamp, subjecting himself to fines totaling $101,716.
Skipping training camp could result in further fines. Matt Barrows of The Athletic recently stated that there is no indication the 49ers will waive any fines resulting from Aiyuk's absences.
"All those fines will start piling up in the summer, [and there's] no indication that the 49ers will forgive Aiyuk for absences the way that they did for Nick Bosa,"
It doesn't seem that long ago when the Kansas City Chiefs signed Patrick Mahomes to a jaw-dropping 10-year, $450 million contract. That $45 million annual salary now looks like a bargain for the NFL's best quarterback. Eight quarterbacks now earn more annually than the three-time Super Bowl champion and two-time NFL MVP.
Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence was the latest player to leap past Mahomes, reportedly signing a five-year extension worth up to $275 million. That $55 million average ties him with Joe Burrow of the Cincinnati Bengals as the highest-paid player in NFL
George Kittle joined the "Dan Patrick Show" this week to discuss the upcoming fourth annual Tight End University gathering and all things San Francisco 49ers. During the conversation, host Dan Patrick asked if Kittle had hazed Brock Purdy during the quarterback's rookie year in 2022.
Kittle delightfully admitted that he did pull a prank on Purdy. However, it might not be categorized as "hazing," as the quarterback was probably more mildly annoyed than embarrassed.
"I put an Iowa football shirt in his locker," Kittle told Patrick. "It was his first day. He pulled it out, he turned around, looked right at me, and he goes, 'What's this doing in my locker?' I said, 'I have no idea, man.' The [equipment] guys here are crazy."
Kittle played college
NFL players might have time off until training camps begin at the end of July, but that doesn't mean the work pauses. They need to stay in shape and hone their fundamentals during this break to prepare for the rigors of training camp and the upcoming 2024 season.
Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams' personal coach, Will Hewlett, revealed that the rookie plans to work with several NFL starting quarterbacks this offseason, including Brock Purdy of the San Francisco 49ers.
Hewlett is also Purdy's personal quarterback coach, someone the 49ers player prefers to work with during the offseason. Purdy even trained with Hewlett in Florida last offseason—albeit limited—as he recovered from surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his
