Brock Purdy is 22 years old. Tom Brady is a 22-year NFL veteran. He is the goat. Purdy grew up a Dolphins fan. He and his dad loved Dan Marino. Brady grew up minutes from Candlestick. He would go the games with his mother. Brady grew up watching Joe Montana and Steve Young life. After reading all of that, you would think Brady is the 49ers quarterback. He isn’t. In Brock Purdy’s first start, he threw two touchdowns and ran for a third. As the last pick of this years draft, he wasn’t expected to play this year. When Jimmy Garoppolo went down, it was next man up and that man was Brock Purdy. He has not disappointed. Brock Purdy led the 49ers to victory in his first career start.
Niners Strike First!
Quarterbacks don’t play each other. They play defenses. Brock Purdy had a tall task going against the number five defense in the league. He was undaunted. Purdy came out and continued to build on last week’s success. Three explosive plays and the Niners were in the endzone in just under three minutes to start the game. Purdy started his first drive of the day with a three-yard toss to George Kittle. His second pass was a 15-yard heater down the middle of the field that was a tad high but Kittle snagged it anyway. Explosive runs by Christian McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel put the Niners into the endzone.
A Quarterback Run
Coach Todd Bowles was afraid of getting into a track meet with the 49ers. He had his kicker attempt a 55-yard field goal. He failed giving the 49ers great field position. Unfortunately, the 49ers could not capitalize and punted the ball back to Tampa. The Niners defense stonewalled Tampa again and soon the Niners offense was on the move again. Purdy kicked the drive off with another 15-yard pass to Kittle. Purdy was under pressure, he stepped up and delivered a strike. Christian McCaffrey had back-to-back 13-yard runs, gliding thru the Buccaneers like they were butter. Purdy hit Deebo on a screen and a few plays later the Niners are on Tampa’s one yard line. Purdy took the snap, surveyed the field, noticed zone was covering his receivers so he promptly ran it in for a touchdown.
Excellent Throw
After Tampa goes three and out, Purdy was back to work. Tampa had a free blitzer first play of the drive. Purdy sees him, swims around him steps outside the pocket and hits Deebo 18 yards down the field for a first down. A potential massive loss turned into a great gain. After a nice mixture of run and pass plays the Niners were on Tampa’s 27-yard line. Purdy takes the snap. He sees McCaffrey is one on one with a defender down the sideline and he has a step. Purdy unloads and delivers the perfect ball to McCaffrey as he crosses the goal line.
Deebo Goes Down
Tampa goes three and out again. Tampa stops the Niners next offensive possession in their tracks, forcing a fumble and knocking Deebo out of the game all in the same play. The Niners were moving the ball and on a 2nd down run, Deebo’s ankle and knee were rolled up on, resulting in a cart taking him off the field. As of this writing, it appears he has a high ankle sprain and is undergoing further evaluation.
Then, Tom Brady starts to get Tampa’s offense moving. They had their best starting field position all night. Brady led Tampa all the way to the 49ers nine-yard line, largely on the strength of a 32-yard strike to Chris Godwin. On a 4th and two, Brady misfired to Mike Evans, and it was the 49ers ball.
Best Drive of the Game!
If anyone had any doubts about Purdy, he shut those doubts down on his next drive. With 2:29 to go in the first half, Coach Shanahan could have opted to run the clock out or just get it into field goal range. Instead, he decided to let Purdy grip it and rip it. McCaffrey got the party started with a couple of five-yard runs. Then Purdy let loose a beautiful pass to Brandon Aiyuk who ran a slick route and was sitting in the open hole of the zone. A few plays later and Purdy hit Aiyuk in the end-zone for a 32-yard touchdown, leaving only 22 seconds on the clock. Clock management, play calling and play execution was excellent during that drive. Purdy is the real deal.
First Turn Over!
The Niners ended Tampa’s first drive of the second half with an interception by Tashaun Gipson Sr., who ran the ball back 36 yards. A few plays later, and Christian McCaffrey ripped off a 38-yard touchdown run. The game was essentially over but there was still 29 minutes of game play left. Tampa did manage to score late in the 3rd quarter. That was it though. The 49ers pulled their punches. They started handing the ball off to Jordan Mason and running the clock.
Greenlaw and Company Defensive Dominance!
The 49ers defense played to their usual standard forcing three turnovers; two interceptions and a forced fumble recovery. Dre Greenlaw snagged the 2nd interception, tipping it to himself in the middle of the field. He convinced Tom Brady to sign the ball. Greenlaw also collected 15 tackles. The defense only allowed four third down conversions out of 16 attempts. They also allowed four fourth down conversions out of seven attempts (mostly in the second half). Brady was never sacked but he was pressured all game long. Tampa was also held to well below 100 yards rushing. The Niners defense played well, despite losing Kevin Givens, a defensive lineman.
The Niners special teams consistently put the offense in great starting field position. Purdy only had to play backed up against his own endzone once and that was due to a 49ers defensive win on 4th down. Purdy led his team to a touchdown that drive.
Purdy Evaluation
All Brock Purdy must do is distribute the ball. He has playmakers all over the field. Find the open receiver and deliver the football. Purdy did that. He was very efficient, connecting on 16 of his 21 throws for 185 yards and two touchdowns. He had a throw to Tyler Kroft early in the game that could have been an interception. He also tried to force a ball to a receiver on their third offensive possession and was rewarded with an interception. Thankfully defensive holding was called and the Niners retained the ball and the down. Overall Purdy did what was required to win. He didn’t make the big mistake and he made a few plays he needed to in order to keep drives alive. His confidence will continue to build.
Eight 49ers caught a Purdy pass, with Aiyuk leading the pack in yards. Deebo and Kittle tied for the most receptions. Six different 49ers toted the rock and were led by McCaffrey with 14 touches for 119 yards and one touchdown. Jordan Mason collected 56 yards in mop up duty. Finally, Brock Purdy is the third quarterback in 49ers history to pass for a touchdown and run for a touchdown in his first career start. Shaun Hill and Jeff Garcia are the other two with that record.
The 49ers are on a short week. They head up to Seattle for Thursday Night Football. This is a great test for Purdy. I am sure he is up for it. Go Niners!
