If you’ve heard one opinion about Brock Purdy, you’ve probably heard a thousand, but Wednesday’s comments about him came from a person closer to Kyle Shanahan’s offense than most.
Former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan arguably never played better in his career than under Kyle Shanahan’s direction, winning both the NFL MVP and Offensive Player Of The Year awards in 2016 as the team rode an explosive offense all the way to the Super Bowl.
Unfortunately, much like Purdy currently, Ryan couldn’t take the final step in a successful season, losing out 34-28 in one of the greatest Super Bowls of all time to the New England Patriots.
Ryan has now commented on his compatriot manning Shanahan’s offense, and he likes what he’s seen so far.
Matt Ryan praises Brock Purdy, ‘fits really well’ in Shanahan offense
Speaking to NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco, Ryan broke down what he believes gives Purdy the skillset to be an excellent fit for Kyle Shanahan.
I think his ability to throw the football over the middle of the field, that’s huge for them and fits within the scheme and what they do…he’s a really good athlete, I think underrated, in terms of mobility, but also accuracy on the run. The ability to be accurate in the intermediate passing game, moving around — that fits with how Kyle wants to run the football,” Ryan said.
Ryan also praised Purdy’s poise and ability to anticipate, citing them as key reasons for his ability to play well in the scheme.
“I think the unknown with Brock early on was, ‘Is he going to be able to make good decisions? Is he going to be poised in two-minute situations and critical third downs?’ And he’s shown to be that in a short career. Your bread is buttered, particularly in San Francisco’s system, in the intermediate passing game, and getting the ball out of your hand quickly and having trust in guys to be where they’re supposed to be.
“And I think Purdy’s vision, anticipation, and accuracy fits really well with that.””
Ryan has a point, as Purdy has so far generated almost 10000 passing yards along with 64 touchdowns in only 40 games, as well as the two playoff runs. It wasn’t all that long ago that Purdy was drawing comparison to Ryan’s MVP run, given the similarity of the figures.
The one step remaining for Purdy
Ultimately, while Purdy remains without a Super Bowl ring, the questions will always follow him, just as they did for the likes of Eli Manning, Peyton Manning, and others in the past.
Much like one of his predecessors at quarterback for San Francisco, Steve Young, winning a Super Bowl has become a monkey on Purdy’s back. Having got to within one game of a Super Bowl (before his elbow injury), and to a Super Bowl but losing in overtime (in 2024’s epic with the Kansas City Chiefs), he can’t get much closer.
Crossing the boundary in 2025 will require a retooled San Francisco 49ers roster to hit its full potential, and early, especially given the loss of playmakers Purdy has enjoyed working with, like Deebo Samuel. It’s not impossible to imagine it happening, especially if Purdy can replicate some of his earlier form. Ryan clearly believes in him.
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