The San Francisco 49ers are now 3-4 on the season, and quarterback Brock Purdy is coming off one of the worst performances of his career. He threw three interceptions in Sunday's loss to the Kansas City Chiefs—only the second time he's thrown three or more in a game, the first being last Christmas against the Baltimore Ravens when he tossed four. His 36.7 passer rating was abysmal, marking his lowest as a starter.
The 49ers will need to make a decision on Purdy after this season. Many believe there's no actual decision to be made—San Francisco should make Purdy one of the highest-paid players in the NFL, if not the highest. Such a move will limit the team's flexibility at other positions. Until now, the 49ers have benefited from having minimal salary cap impact from their quarterback.
An unnamed NFL executive speculated on the team's options given their aging core of key players. As Mike Sando of The Athletic points out, the 49ers have the NFL's third-oldest roster by snap-weighted average age, thanks in part to paying top dollar to retain key veterans. Players like Trent Williams (36) and George Kittle (31) are still highly productive but come at a high cost.
"They need to make a decision about whether they should just be moving on from this older core and building around Purdy, or do they trade Purdy, get stuff for him and go with a cheaper option at quarterback?" the executive told Sando.
Finding a reliable starting quarterback in the NFL is no easy task, and it would seem risky to start the search over, especially after years of fumbling around with Brian Hoyer, C.J. Beathard, Nick Mullens, Jimmy Garoppolo, and Trey Lance.
Speaking of Lance, his acquisition cost the 49ers several first-round picks, a decision that had a lasting impact on their roster-building efforts.
"That is probably San Francisco's biggest issue," a different executive told Sando. "They are starting to feel three first-round picks for Trey Lance. They have done a good job drafting with later picks. It is great they got Purdy. He makes up for one of those first-round picks, but not two others."
While the first executive doesn't dispute Purdy's skill, he doesn't see him as an elite NFL talent and is skeptical about paying him like one.
The most likely scenario is that the 49ers and Purdy agree on a long-term deal, which means decisions will need to be made at other positions. Trading Brandon Aiyuk, who will likely miss the remainder of the season, is not an option. Instead, the 49ers may face decisions on Deebo Samuel or Kittle, both of whom will enter the final year of their contracts next season.
For now, the 49ers will focus on bouncing back with a win over the Dallas Cowboys. A Week 8 loss would undoubtedly raise even more concerns as the team heads into their bye week.