Brock Purdy and the Run Up to the NFL Playoffs
In a season marred by multiple injuries to the most important position in football, the San Francisco 49ers managed to close out the regular season with ten straight wins, a 13-4 record, and the No. 2 seed heading into the NFL playoffs. While much of that success can be heaped on the coaching staff, a quick overview of Brock Purdy stats throughout his five-start stretch paint the picture of a seventh-round draft selection that has not been overwhelmed by his new opportunity.
The former Iowa State QB performed his latest trick in Week 18, in a final game against the division-rival Arizona Cardinals; he completed 15 of 20 pass attempts for a 75% completion rate, 178 yards, no interceptions, and three touchdowns, two of which went to tight end George Kittle.
It's impossible to ignore Purdy's poise throughout this crucial back-end of the season, but "Mr. Irrelevant" certainly doesn't feel compelled to heap praises on himself, regardless of the improbability of a third-string, 263rd 2022 NFL Draft selection doing what he's doing; “I have so many playmakers around me I feel like I don’t have all the weight of the world on my shoulders to make something up,” Purdy said Sunday after the 49ers’ 38-13 victory over the Arizona Cardinals in the regular-season finale.
“I just have to go through my progressions and throw check-downs to guys like Deebo [Samuel] and Christian [McCaffrey], and they make guys miss,” Purdy said. “For me, it’s nice. I just have to distribute it to guys and they come up with all the yards and stuff, which is fun to watch.”
Quarterback Brock Purdy's Last Six Weeks
After such a long season, it's almost easy to forget all of the 49ers' QB situations, considering they started well before the preseason even began. With the news swirling for months that Jimmy Garoppolo would be traded to clear out the room for sophomore Trey Lance, the rumors would end up all-for-naught as Lance lasted only three dropbacks into his second game of the season, which quickly reversed the roles. Garoppolo would sadly follow suit in Week 13, and the rookie would take the team to a 5-0 record while operating perfectly within the confines of a Kyle Shanahan offense.
Brock Purdy wrapped up Week 18 as fantasy's QB5, marking his fifth-straight game with at least 16 fantasy points, and has operated as a fringe top-12 option despite being in a challenging position, coming off the bench behind the guy that was coming off the bench.
Wild Card Weekend Outlook
The 49ers will draw one of the best fantasy matchups of the weekend, but it is likely to tilt toward the running game instead of an especially voluminous passing attack. The Seattle Seahawks currently rank 14th in schedule-adjusted fantasy points to the quarterback position, but only 28th against running backs, and those splits have been even more pronounced since their Week 11 Bye week. From Week 12-on, they rank 23rd in explosive rush%, 30th in rush EPA per play, and 31st in rushing yards allowed per game.
In a shortened slate of games, each of Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel, and George Kittle should be under consideration, but running back Christian McCaffrey is in a situation to be the most valuable fantasy commodity of Week "19". As the 49ers have opened as ten-point favorites, it seems likely that the depth behind CMC will get some run as well, and Elijah Mitchell is returning to the team at just the right time, as evidenced by his 55 yards and two scores while only playing 16% of the offensive snaps in Week 18.
