INGLEWOOD – After Brock Purdy failed to hit receivers on several passes in the 49ers’ 30-23 win over the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, fellow tight end George Kittle joked that he knew why that happened.
“I think it’s just because he has a really strong elbow and he just sailed a few times,” Kittle said Sunday at SoFi Stadium. “He will come back to it. We’re not worried about it. I don’t expect Brock to play perfectly. That’s why we have such a great offense and defense around him; He doesn’t have to play perfectly. None of us are asking for that.”
Purdy’s return from surgery on the ulnar collateral ligament of his throwing arm is well documented, but no one honestly blames the bionic strength in Purdy’s arm for the misses. Coach Kyle Shanahan believes his quarterback has otherwise had a solid performance.
“I thought Brock played a heck of a game,” Shanahan said on a conference call Monday. “The only thing I think we can really say negatively about his game are those three missed shots, which are serious, especially when they’re further back because it’s usually about points, but he had a pretty good game .”
Purdy finished the game with 17 of his 25 attempts for 206 yards and a rushing touchdown, giving him a passer rating of 93.1. It was the first game since being named the club’s starting quarterback in which the Iowa State product didn’t record a passing touchdown, but more importantly, Purdy didn’t turn the ball over.
Kittle isn’t worried about his younger teammate, knowing the 23-year-old has a support group that will stand by him when things don’t go quite according to plan. The All-Pro tight end believes Purdy’s maturity is a key to the offense remaining productive even in difficult situations.
“You want him to make every single throw. If he doesn’t, it’s OK,” Kittle said. “We have a team that is good enough to compensate for things like that. It is constant, never gets too high, never too low. He takes great joy when he makes great plays and doesn’t be too hard on himself like he should.
“We are a good team and can bring him in if needed.”
Purdy uncharacteristically missed passes to Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel and Jauan Jennings in Sunday’s contest, but all receivers spoke up for their teammate. They believe that the chemistry between them will only improve with more time together on the field.
The most important part of Sunday’s divisional game was leaving Southern California with a win.
“He rocked,” Aiyuk said of Purdy on Sunday. “He got us going and got us out of there. He is the leader of this team. He got the offense going and put up points to close out this game.”
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