MVPurdy? 49ers quarterback leaves teammates buzzing with latest performance

Yes, it's way too early to make any sort of accurate assessment of how this season's MVP race will turn out in the NFL. But that doesn't mean there weren't at least a few people thinking about it after Brock Purdy's performance against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday.

Purdy had a nearly perfect passing performance in the San Francisco 49ers' 35-13 win over the Dolphins, throwing for 287 yards and two touchdowns on 20-of-22 passing with three carries for 30 yards and one rushing touchdown. Purdy's first incompletion came on his third pass of the game while his second came on his final pass, and he completed everything in between en route to a QBR of 99.7, one of the highest single-game totals in league history.

Even though Purdy probably won't be the last quarterback to feast on a rebuilding Dolphins team this season, his performance was the talk of the 49ers' locker room after the win.

"MVP Brock Purdy," linebacker Fred Warner said to reporters after Purdy left the stage during his post-game press conference.

Purdy was also solid in the 49ers' Week 1 win over the Los Angeles Rams in Melbourne, Australia, completing 25-of-34 passes for 205 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. But he was elite on Sunday, performing at the type of level that would have him in the MVP conversation if he continued to approach it throughout the remainder of the season.

"Yeah, he was real sharp," head coach Kyle Shanahan said. "He was on point, got the ball to all the right spots. I think his one incompletion was a drop, and then the other one on a third down, we had a bust on the play, but he was great today."

Purdy's most buzzworthy highlight of the game, at least on social media, came on a 26-yard pass to wide receiver Mike Evans to put the 49ers at the Dolphins' 1-yard line. Wide receiver Deebo Samuel was the target on the play for what would have been a shorter gain, but Purdy faked and threw a precise strike to Evans to set up a touchdown.

"It was a keeper trying to hit Deebo underneath," Shanahan said. "They held for him. There were two guys waiting on Mike, too, and Brock just—he stayed with him, waited for him to clear him, and it was a perfect ball. If it wouldn't have been a perfect ball, it would've been an interception, because the guy was looking to undercut it. He just faded it over the top of them. It was a dime."

The completion was one of 19 straight for Purdy, who was too focused on the fact the Dolphins put up a fight in the first half to realize how much of a streak he was on.

"I honestly didn't know until towards the end, fourth quarter maybe," Purdy said Sunday. "But for me, it was like, 'Dude, we had two drives in the first half, you know? They were eating up clock and stuff.' So for me, every play, every drive mattered. It wasn't like we went out there and just blew these guys out. It was a game ... So that's where my head space was at, is like how can I protect the ball, how can I move the ball, be in the right looks, and be aggressive, and keep us ahead of the chains?"

Purdy's first two games come as no surprise to his teammates, and not just because they've been singing his praises for years. Purdy came into the season after what a number of them felt was his best training camp since joining the team after being the final pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.

"My takeaway is I'm not surprised," Warner said. "Brock is unbelievable, and I've spoken on how great of a preseason he had and his camp, his command of the offense. But it's different, right? I mean, we get judged on those three hours that we're out there. And so, for him to be operating the offense the way he is right now, it doesn't matter who the other pieces are. As long as Brock's the one that's being the point guard, I know we're good."

Shanahan also feels like Purdy had his best training camp, while also bringing a level of veteran experience that has naturally made him a better quarterback.

"I thought he had his best training camp, just in terms of being aggressive with things, but not stupid -- still making the right, efficient decision, but when there's a chance of things being aggressive, and I've seen that here these last two weeks," Shanahan said. "I think the more he plays, just with experience, the easier defenses come to recognize and things like that. But, you know, he played so good right away that it's not like, 'Oh, he's so much better in this area.' I just think you gradually become a vet, and you're used to everything that you've seen, you're used to every situation you've been in, you've been up, you've been down. You've seen everything people have thrown at you, and you just get more used to it."

Warner echoed the feelings of Shanahan in terms of Purdy's experience, saying, "The game is so slow to him now, so he's out there kind of just manipulating things, knows coverages better than anybody, the processing ability, the ability to create and escape. All those little things that make a great quarterback in this league, he does all those things at a high level."

It's hard to imagine that Purdy could be much better than he was on Sunday, but his teammates seem to think it's possible.

"I was just talking to Fred about that during camp," safety Ji'Ayir Brown said in a postgame interview with NBC Sports Bay Area. "Brock was already good. The step he took this year in camp, bro, because we went against him every day, it was just like, 'Man.' And his ceiling's still high. It still feels like he could be better. It feels like he could have gone 22-for-22. So he's going to continue to strive for greatness and be who he is, and that's what makes this team great."

Left tackle Trent Williams said of Purdy, "He looked like he was at practice out there, wheeling and dealing. We're starting to witness Brock's prime, and I think it's going to be a sight to behold. To me, I've always loved Brock. But I think he's starting to get his respect now. And he doesn't even relish any of this. It's all about next week, going 1-0. And that's why he's a great leader."

Injuries at wide receiver aren't helping Purdy's cause, as veteran Demarcus Robinson joined the list of wounded on Sunday with an ankle sprain. Purdy is already without Ricky Pearsall due to a season-ending knee injury, while rookie De'Zhaun Stribling is expected to miss much of the season due to an ankle issue of his own. But he seems to find a way to win regardless of which receivers are in the lineup.

"It don't matter to him," Brown said. "They didn't have any of those guys last year. He still went out there and balled and led us to the second round of the playoffs. Just give him weapons and he's going to keep making plays for you."

Purdy may wind up not being as close to perfect in any other game this season as he was on Sunday, and he'll almost certainly have a down-to-earth moment or two given some of the challenges that lie ahead on the 49ers' schedule. But, after his performance against the Dolphins, it's fun to wonder about the direction Purdy could be heading in this season. His teammates seem more confident in him than ever.

"I mean, he's special," running back Christian McCaffrey said. "I think that'd be the word I'd use for it. I think when him and Kyle get on a roll like that, it's so fun to watch ... I don't feel like he threw an incompletion the whole day. I don't know what the stats are, but it's unbelievable to watch that and how decisive he is, how good he is at throwing on time, and then also creating when he has to. When he's at the helm, we feel good."

Mentioned in this article: Ji'Ayir Brown, Mike Evans, Christian McCaffrey, Ricky Pearsall, Brock Purdy, Demarcus Robinson, Deebo Samuel, De'Zhaun Stribling, Fred Warner, Trent Williams