Purdy\u2019s fairy-tale rise up the depth chart<\/a> was always predicated on keeping it simple. Know your reads, anticipate, react and fire. But last season, he forced it too often, and his completion percentage went down while his interception percentage went up.<\/p>\n \u201cI wanted to get back to the Super Bowl in one play,\u201d Purdy said.<\/p>\n So at different points this spring, Purdy threw passes to George Kittle, Pearsall and Jacob Cowing; worked with his personal throwing coach in Jacksonville; and had an \u201copen conversation\u201d with 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan, offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak and quarterbacks coach Mick Lombardi.<\/p>\n \u201cWe attacked my fundamentals, speeding up my feet, being better with my eyes and my mindset,\u201d Purdy said. \u201cThen we repped it out all summer and were intentional with it during training camp. Last year, I went into games thinking, \u2018Hey, we\u2019re down this receiver and this running back \u2026\u2019 and I wasn\u2019t going through my progression the right way.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m scrambling, rather than reading the play out for how it actually needs to be read out and trusting my eyes, trusting my fundamentals.\u201d<\/p>\n Purdy has worked with throwing coach Will Hewlett since his last bowl game at Iowa State. This year, they focused on refining the little things.<\/p>\n \u201cWe were trying to get perfect ball placement on all the different layers of throws,\u201d Hewlett said in a phone interview Saturday. \u201cYou need almost like a machine mentality \u2026 but you also want to be creative and be able to adapt to any situation. <\/p>\n \u201cWhat makes him a difference-maker is how well and how quickly he sees things. For some guys, the game moves fast. I think it moves a lot slower for him.\u201d<\/p>\n Brock Purdy<\/p>\n 49ers<\/p>\n \n \u25c2 Worse Niners defensive coordinator Robert Saleh faced Purdy last season as head coach of the New York Jets and lost. He has long been impressed with the quarterback\u2019s release and ball placement.<\/p>\n \u201cThe young man layers the ball as good as anybody in football,\u201d Saleh said.<\/p>\n New backup quarterback Mac Jones has known Purdy<\/a> since showing him around on a college tour at Alabama in 2017 (Purdy chose Iowa State). He loves to watch Purdy\u2019s approach in meetings, as well as his connection with Kittle in practice.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel like I\u2019m on like \u2018Madden\u2019 or something watching Brock and George,\u201d Jones said, \u201cbecause they\u2019re just in sync every time.\u201d<\/p>\n Purdy hasn\u2019t lost sight of the fact that quarterbacks still have to make plays born out of chaos, when progressions break down and pass rushers close in. So he has also worked on his mobility, throwing from different arm angles on the run.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m somewhat of a stiff quarterback,\u201d Purdy said. \u201cThat\u2019s not a bad thing, but something that I always try to work on is my arm and mobility.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cObviously, he\u2019s a precision passer, but I think he\u2019s underrated in terms of his ability to create when the play\u2019s not there,\u201d Hewlett added.<\/p>\n In workouts with teammates, Purdy has focused on sharpening receivers\u2019 timing. Pearsall became a standout at training camp, but there were times when Purdy had to pull the second-year receiver aside after plays to discuss steps, timing or route angles.<\/p>\n \u201cLast year, Ricky was raw with his talent,\u201d Purdy said. \u201cHe had it, but he also had to learn our system, our timing and where I\u2019m throwing the ball. He\u2019s got a lot of shimmy, which is great. We need that, specifically against man coverage to create separation, and we love that.<\/p>\n \u201cBut there were some times where he had to learn that he couldn\u2019t take a couple more steps and then break out \u2014 I need you there now. I need to get the ball out now.\u201d<\/p>\n Even on plays where Pearsall thought he was open, Purdy told him he needed him to get free quicker.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s done a great job of competing and pushing through practices when he\u2019s tired and getting the reps and building up the stamina,\u201d Purdy said. \u201cWe\u2019re going to definitely feed him the ball, and I can\u2019t wait to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n Purdy has no choice. Though McCaffrey is back and fully healthy, and Kittle is a matchup nightmare, the 49ers are thin again at wide receiver. Aiyuk is still recovering from a torn ACL suffered in October. He has started to run routes but is out for at least another month. Jauan Jennings has a nagging calf injury (though his nagging contract issue has been solved<\/a>), but he returned to practice Monday and was listed as limited on Wednesday.<\/p>\n Cowing is on injured reserve with a hamstring injury, rookie Jordan Watkins (ankle) is also hurt and Demarcus Robinson is serving a three-game suspension. That leaves Pearsall, perhaps Jennings, and newcomers Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Russell Gage and Robbie Chosen.<\/p>\n Shanahan might lean on the running game early, but he and the players have a lot of confidence in Purdy. They always have, in some cases surprisingly so, given he showed up in 2022 as the last draft pick, buried on the depth chart.<\/p>\n \u201cI usually don\u2019t even go to (offseason workouts), but I was there for a few days and happened to see his first one,\u201d Williams, the star left tackle, recalled of the spring of 2022. \u201cI just watched how he commanded the huddle. I watched the throws. I watched how he went through his reads and how he processed everything.\u201d<\/p>\n Williams went straight to Shanahan\u2019s office afterward.<\/p>\n \u201cI said, \u2018I don\u2019t know who that kid is, but y\u2019all found one,\u2019\u201d Williams said. \u201cHe reminds me a lot of how Kirk Cousins came in (with Washington in 2012). Just a noticeable difference, like this cat can really play the quarterback position, you know?<\/p>\n \u201cAnd then the pads came on, and the live bullets start flying, and Brock proved it every single step of the way. I also liked the moxie. I liked him standing up to Kyle once in a while. It\u2019s pretty special when a seventh-round pick beats out veterans who they\u2019re paying millions of dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n Purdy said it wasn\u2019t until a Week 13 win against the Miami Dolphins that season \u2014 when he came in for an injured Jimmy Garoppolo and threw two touchdown passes \u2014 that he felt he had proved himself.<\/p>\n \u201cI threw my first touchdown, and then Trent was one of the first guys to celebrate with me,\u201d Purdy said, smiling. \u201cI feel like he had my back and knew that I had something special in me. So to me, that was the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/0ItM9ROZC8mOtKOv_144x96.png\")
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