Kay Adams says the quiet part out loud about 49ers post Brock Purdy's return

Quarterback Brock Purdy had his worst game of the season back in Week 12 against the Carolina Panthers in front of a national audience on Monday Night Football, tossing three interceptions and giving his critics plenty of ammunition to respark the debate whether he or backup signal-caller Mac Jones should be the top guy under center.

Yet the San Francisco 49ers nevertheless won that game. And Purdy swiftly put to rest any notion of post-injury problems with dominant outings against the Cleveland Browns and Tennessee Titans in subsequent outings.

The Titans game was easily Purdy's best game to date. Yet it was against Tennessee, a squad in the mix for the top pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, not a true competitor. No one outside of those two fanbases would have watched that game anyway.

Well, Purdy made sure people paid attention when he and the Niners faced a playoff-desperate Indianapolis Colts team on Monday Night Football in Week 16.

By tossing a career-best five touchdowns against an Indy defense that largely held the surging Seattle Seahawks in check the week prior, Purdy and Co. cruised to a 48-27 victory that (again) put a stop to the unwarranted criticism.

And Up & Adams host Kay Adams wants you to be sure you understand.

Kay Adams is blunt about Brock Purdy and his return to 49ers

More and more, that three-pick game against Carolina looks more like the occasional anomaly than the norm (even Hall of Fame QBs had those kinds of games, right?).

Purdy's near-perfect performance against Indianapolis in a hostile environment at Lucas Oil Stadium shouldn't go unnoticed, and Adams made sure to hit that point home hard.

"Honestly, this entire stretch since he's come back from injury, it has been an emphatic reminder of why the Niners went all-in on him with the contract," Adams remarked of QB1. "Not that we should have needed it with all that he's done already."

As Adams casually reminded everyone, San Francisco is undefeated since Purdy's return from his turf-toe injury. While Jones filled in admirably, helping the 49ers go 5-3 in that stretch, Purdy has elevated the offense to additional levels.

And he's done so without wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk all season, as well as second-year pro Ricky Pearsall missing large chunks of the year because of injuries.

So much for the "stacked receivers room" argument.

Adams also shared how Purdy's 70.2 completion percentage over the last five games ranks first among all NFL signal-callers during that stretch, while the apparently woeful interceptions balance out to a 14-to-4 touchdown-to-interception ratio, which interestingly ranks second best.

"Fourteen total touchdowns and just four picks," Adams continued. "Read it and weep, NFC."