Kyle Shanahan defends Brocky Purdy amid reported struggles at 49ers' training camp

San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan came to the defense of Brock Purdy amid reports of his struggles at training camp.

Purdy reportedly had issues with interceptions in the early stages of camp, leading some to say he might just not be it. However, Shanahan didn’t make a big deal of his quarterback, who just led San Francisco to Super Bowl LVIII last season.

He pointed to the hard evidence that is Purdy’s last two years of tape.

“I know, always, stats are made a big deal in practice and I know that’ll stick out. And we never want a lot of picks in practice, regardless of who it is, but Brock’s never really had an interception problem,” Shanahan said, via 49ers Webzone. “He’s protected the ball pretty well in this league for his two years. He also isn’t scared to let it rip, too. When you’re in practice, if we were really trying to fix that, and if he had had a problem, and you come out and that’s all we’re focusing on, and he still has some stats like that, then that’s something that concerns you. 

“But that’s something I really haven’t been worried about with Brock, and that’s why those stats are also something that hasn’t bothered me at all.”

Brock Purdy struggling in camp?

In two seasons, Purdy is 17-4 as a starter and has 5,654 yards, 44 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. Last year, he tossed 31 touchdowns and just 11 picks.

If you go back to February, 49ers legend Jerry Rice called Purdy an “elite quarterback.”

“‘Mr. Irrelevant,’ Brock Purdy, supposed to be that, I guess that game manager, that’s what they keep saying,” Rice said ahead of the Super Bowl. “I feel like he’s an elite quarterback. I think we have a chance.”

Rice would certainly know what an elite quarterback looks like, as he played with two Pro Football Hall of Famers in Joe Montana and Steve Young. Montana and Young are exactly the names Rice compared Purdy to as he prepares to face the Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII.“He makes plays, man, like a Montana, like a Steve Young,” Rice said. “Just a down-to-earth person who wants to win. He’s going to do everything he can to get that victory.”

Although Purdy and the 49ers came up short to the Kansas City Chiefs, the team has the roster to run it back in 2024. As long as he isn’t a turnover machine, San Francisco should be fine.