Brock Purdy didn’t just manage the 49ers’ 35-13 win over the Dolphins on Sunday. He owned it.
San Francisco’s quarterback posted the highest overall offensive grade in the NFL for Week 2 so far, according to Pro Football Focus, after directing a nightmarish start for Miami and helping the 49ers score touchdowns on their first five possessions. Purdy’s 96.6 overall offensive grade and 94.2 passing grade were the best marks in the league, and the numbers backed up the eye test all afternoon.
He finished 20 of 22 for 287 yards, two passing touchdowns and no interceptions, then added a 2-yard rushing score to finish with 30 rushing yards. Purdy also closed the game by completing his final 18 passes in a row and finished with a 149.1 passer rating. Through two games, his season rating sits at 125.6.
The 49ers’ line gave him a clean pocket all day. Purdy still hasn’t been sacked through two games this season, and San Francisco’s protection held up again against Miami.
Trent Williams led the group with a 72.8 offensive grade, giving up just one pressure and one hit over 26 pass-blocking snaps while also posting a team-best 75.4 run-blocking grade. Connor Colby was even cleaner in pass protection, earning the game’s top pass-blocking grade at 86.3 and allowing no pressures on 27 pass-blocking snaps.
Colton McKivitz had the roughest outing among the starters in pass protection, charged with three of the four pressures allowed by the line and finishing with a 48.3 pass-blocking grade. Vederian Lowe brought up the rear at 41.8, though that came in only eight snaps.
The skill players behind Purdy had their own strong moments. George Kittle was the headline target, leading all receivers with a 93.0 receiving grade while catching four passes for 80 yards and a touchdown in his second game back from Achilles recovery. Kyle Juszczyk made both of his catches count, turning two targets into 27 yards and a touchdown and grading out as Purdy’s second-best weapon in the passing game.
Demarcus Robinson also showed up well, earning an 80.8 grade, while Mike Evans posted an 80.0. On the other end of the spectrum, Deebo Samuel had a quieter afternoon than usual. He finished with a 58.4 overall grade, a 60.5 receiving grade, one drop charged to him, and a team-low 57.0 run grade.
In the backfield, rookie Kaelon Black graded as the top tailback with a 68.4 run grade after rushing seven times for 25 yards. Christian McCaffrey put up a 57.4 run grade and gained 23 yards on 10 carries, but he still found the end zone twice on short goal-line runs to reach 100 career scores.
San Francisco’s highest and lowest offensive grades told the story pretty clearly: Purdy was in complete control, Kittle and Juszczyk kept making plays, and the line did its job while the 49ers rolled.
In Other News...
49ers WR Injuries Could Force A Trade For Former First Rounder
Early-season injuries have already thinned out the 49ers receiver room, and that kind of problem tends to get attention fast in Santa Clara. When the depth chart starts wobbling at wideout, the conversation usually turns from short-term patch jobs to bigger swings, especially for a team that expects to stay in the playoff hunt and cant afford to let a promising start get bogged down by attrition.
One name now floating into that discussion is Jerry Jeudy, with Bleacher Reports Moe Moton pointing to the Browns as a possible trade partner. Clevelands new coaching staff is leaning into younger players, and Jeudys role and production have both faded enough to make a deal conceivable if the price is right. For San Francisco, it is the sort of move that makes sense on paper, even if the real question is whether the 49ers feel pressure to act before the market gets thinner. [Read more 🡒]
49ers Fan Captured The NFL Streaming Frustration Everyone Feels
At Levis Stadium during the 49ers home opener, one fan managed to turn a handmade sign into a small but sharp snapshot of a bigger problem around the NFLs modern viewing experience. The message spoke to what has become an increasingly familiar annoyance for fans trying to follow games online, where access is split across multiple platforms instead of sitting in one place.
Amazon Prime Video, Peacock, Paramount+ and Netflix have all become part of the leagues fragmented streaming landscape, and each one comes with its own subscription hurdle. The sign struck a chord because it reflected a frustration many viewers know well, the sense that watching football digitally now requires more juggling, more spending and a lot more patience than it used to. [Read more 🡒]
49ers Suddenly Have A Receiver Problem They Cant Ignore
Demarcus Robinsons high ankle sprain has quickly turned a manageable depth issue into something the 49ers cant really wave off. Kyle Shanahan confirmed the injury, and Robinson is expected to land on Injured Reserve, which would add another hit to a receiver room that already has rookie DeZhaun Stribling on IR. In a year when San Francisco has had to keep patching holes, this is the kind of blow that tests how much flexibility the offense really has left.
For now, Mike Evans and Deebo Samuel are the primary healthy options, but Evans is dealing with a hip injury of his own, which only adds to the uncertainty. That leaves the 49ers leaning harder on younger receivers like Jacob Cowing and Jordan Watkins, with KhaDarel Hodge also in the mix, while the front office keeps an eye on possible trade help. The position is suddenly thin enough that San Francisco may have to decide whether to ride out the depth chart as it is or act before the problem grows even bigger. [Read more 🡒]