The San Francisco 49ers have moved onto the Divisional round of the playoffs after a blowout 41-23 victory over the Seattle Seahawks.
While it took a little bit longer than fans would have wanted, but the San Francisco 49ers finally managed to shut the door on a plucky Seattle Seahawks team that refused to go quietly.
Read More: 49ers vs. Seahawks final score: Brock Purdy, 49ers break out in the 2nd half
The game was too close for comfort for much of the middle portion, with the 49ers clinging onto a 23-17 lead and the Seahawks driving down the field before a strip sack by EDGE Charles Omenihu was eagerly pounced on by fellow EDGE Nick Bosa. The touchdown on the ensuring possession finally opened the floodgates that fans had been clamoring for.
At the heart of it all was rookie quarterback Brock Purdy, who had a slow start of his own before hitting his stride in the second half with some key throws as well as moves on the ground to get the team going with yet another big offensive performance.
Purdy finished 18-for-30 passing for 332 yards, three passing touchdowns and a fourth touchdown on the ground. His most impressive throw wasn’t even completed, with wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk dropping what would have been a touchdown for the ages as well as the fifth total touchdown for the day for Purdy.
Purdy had the best playoff passing game since the legendary Joe Montana in Super Bowl XXIII (Montana went 23-for-36 passing for 357 yards and two touchdowns in the 20-16 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals) and proved that yes, he has what it takes under the spotlight of playoff football.
However it wasn’t a perfect game, with Purdy also demonstrating some tendencies that need cleaning up if the 49ers are to walk away with a sixth Lombardi trophy. The good definitely outweighed the bad, so let’s look an objective look at both.
The good
Utilizing Deebo Samuel:
Wide receiver Deebo Samuel returned in Week 18 against the Arizona Cardinals, but a relatively vanilla gameplan meant that he didn’t have a big impact in his game back and his presence was somewhat minimal.
Things changed in this game however, with Deebo having a starring role. He finished with six receptions for 133 yards and a touchdown where Purdy found him in space and he was able to do the rest along with some blocking.
Part of what has made Purdy so excellent is his ability to use every weapon at his disposal, with a new focal point seemingly every week. It makes Purdy and his accuracy in intermediate passes impossible to defend.
Next week we may very well write this about someone else entirely, but Purdy and Deebo were on the same page all game.
Smartly extending plays:
There were some plays where Purdy was a bit too spooked at times and was quick to abandon the play and roll out behind and to the left as he tends to do, but he did a much better job extending plays and avoiding negative results unlike his slight regression in the Arizona game.
His touchdown throws to running backs Christian McCaffrey and Elijah Mitchell were both a result of him going through progressions, avoiding pressure in the pocket and hitting strikes to his receiver. The poise from Purdy has been his biggest weapon all season and this was a prime example.
The best example however wasn’t even a reception, but the dropped touchdown from Brandon Aiyuk. Purdy rolled out to the left, found nothing there and then proceeded all the way across the field to the right hand sideline. Purdy pumped to fake a defender out the way and then threw an absolute dart to the corner of the endzone that Aiyuk just couldn’t quite reel in. It was an absolutely phenomenal throw, showing Purdy’s ability to not just play within a system but also make it up if the situation calls for it.
Poise is everything in the playoffs, and Purdy did not falter.
His intermediate throws:
It looks more and more that Purdy’s bread and butter is in the intermediate throws about 10-20 yards from the line of scrimmage, completing more than his fair share in games including this playoff.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan is a scheming genius when it comes to getting his stars in space, and Purdy has been able to hit them up on this kind of throw exceptionally consistently. Purdy has struggled a bit on the true deep throws in recent weeks, so these have been the plays where he’s really gotten big chunks of yardage through the air.
The bad
Getting skittish in the pocket:
The one bad habit that Purdy seems to have in his play is a tendency to remove himself from the pocket by moving back and to the left, a move that cost him some big yardage against the Cardinals which thankfully didn’t cost the 49ers too much.
While Purdy didn’t concede any huge sacks of this nature against the Seahawks, there were a lot of plays (especially late in the first half) where he took off at the first sign of trouble and repeatedly had to throw the ball away. He was a bit skittish in the pocket, and didn’t allow himself to get set which forced some errant throws into coverages where there was no chance of a reception and a very big chance of being picked.
Fortunately Purdy looked refreshed and ready for the second half, and was able to calm down and allow himself to go through his progressions and launch some impressive strikes. He just has to make sure he doesn’t get flushed out too soon.
Missing the deep ball:
We’ve all see Purdy hit some impressive deep balls in his tenure as the 49ers starter, but he’s not been quite as accurate in recent weeks.
He had wide receiver Jauan Jennings open for a touchdown in this game, but threw the ball too late which allowed the pass to be broken up. If he had his timing just a little better, it would have been a certain score.
Purdy’s arm strength is never going to be the best but his has the touch to make the throws, but he’s very dependent on timing. It’s just not been there in recent weeks, but luckily it hasn’t had to be either.
Slow start:
Purdy usually has excellent vision and decision making skills, but these were a bit spotty in the game and particularly the first. He had good throws of course, but he also missed throws like the aforementioned potential Jennings touchdown as well as missing Deebo Samuel underneath when he went for a deep ball that was nowhere close.
In addition, a lot of quick passes didn’t have the kind of accuracy needed that he usualy provides.
As mentioned Purdy was better as the game went on and he had a spectacular second half, but 49ers fans will be hoping he can have that kind of game for the full four quarters.
What Purdy proved
There was a big narrative going around this week about what Brock Purdy would do in the playoffs. Sure he was able to lead the team in the regular season, but to have the national spotlight shining hard upon you in a playoff game is another matter entirely.
Purdy became the first rookie to win a playoff game since Russell Wilson for the Seahawks in 2013, recorded a blowout and was exceptional overall.
So in short the narrative has been answered. Purdy does indeed have what it takes to prosper in the playoffs.
And the scary notion is he can only get better. He had the best playoff game by a 49ers QB in over 30 years, and yet he missed several big throws including a deep touchdown to Jauan Jennings while having another one dropped.
If Purdy can just iron out some of the wrinkles in recent weeks like his slow start and his timing on the deep ball, he can put any team to the sword in the playoffs. He’s just a rookie, that’ll come with more experience under his belt.
But those adjustments aside, the command of the offense is incredible for any rookie let alone the circumstances Purdy faced when he did, and he’s no shrinking violet who regresses when the playoff spotlight is upon him.
As of writing the opponent for the 49ers is unclear coming up. It’ll be the Minnesota Vikings if they defeat the New York Giants, or else it’ll be the winner of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers-Dallas Cowboys matchup. There’s no reason the 49ers can’t beat any of these teams.
If the 49ers can just piece together 12 more quarters of winning football, they’ll have a sixth Lombardi finally in their trophy cabinet.
And if Purdy is the one to lead them there and become the first rookie quarterback ever in the NFL to accomplish that feat, it’ll be the beginning of what looks to be an exceptional career for the young man.