San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy is currently ranked second in the NFL MVP standings by DraftKings Sportsbook, while teammate Christian McCaffrey, a running back, is ranked ninth.
Although head coach Kyle Shanahan is by no means impartial, he can understand both of his players’ candidacies for the coveted award.
In response to a question concerning Purdy and McCaffrey’s MVP campaign, Shanahan joked that he was worried about getting into trouble with his two players for supporting the other.
“That’s only reason I wouldn’t overly comment on either one of them because I don’t want them to cancel each other out,” said Shanahan. But I don’t understand how Christian McCaffrey can’t win MVP if any non-quarterback can. He’s been doing amazing things this year, really.
“I don’t need to discuss Christian if it’s going to a quarterback. I’m able to discuss our quarterback. And that, in my opinion, settles the matter if all you see are his numbers. The most crucial thing, in my opinion, is that it becomes even stronger if you watch the movie.”
Purdy had surgery in the off-season to repair the UCL injury he suffered in the NFC Championship Game of the previous season. This week, the quarterback spoke with Bay Area radio station KNBR, revealing that he had consulted former 49ers quarterback Nick Mullens, who had undergone a comparable procedure in 2020.
Mullens told Purdy that by the halfway point of the season, his arm would have significantly improved.
Purdy wrote, “He was correct. I’m thrilled that my arm feels fantastic halfway through the year.
Regarding Purdy’s remarks, Shanahan was questioned about whether he had also observed improvement in his quarterback.
Shanahan retorted, “It’s not that you can see it on film.” It’s not as if, Whoa, that thing has a lot more zip. He’s launching much farther. Being physically fit seems to be the key. Receivers who don’t catch a football for a month return and drop passes, and it’s not because their hands aren’t strong enough. The reason is that their eyes aren’t. They simply don’t see it as well because they’re not used to moving at full speed and keeping up with things so quickly.
“A quarterback is born to throw, and if he isn’t doing so in the offseason, he throws the ball correctly. After being cleared, he resumed throwing, but it’s not in optimal condition. He’s not just putting in all those reps, day in and day out. That’s why athletes occasionally suffer injuries that prevent them from throwing for a few weeks. When they return, their arm strength is still there, but it’s inconsistent.
“And in my opinion, Brock exhibits consistency. I believe that gradually you catch up to trying to get his arm back into shape and building and ramping all that up, with just the quantity of throws and stuff. And I believe that’s the reason he did nothing during his week off.”
Shanahan acknowledged that Purdy appeared rusty following his bye week, but by the end of the week, the quarterback was throwing more accurately than he had all season. Purdy and McCaffrey’s squad is currently in the lead for the top seed in the NFC playoff standings.
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