Sound the alarm, the San Francisco 49ers may very well be back in business as starting quarterback Brock Purdy returned to the helm of the offense this past weekend.
Facing off against an NFC West division rival in the Arizona Cardinals, Purdy felt right at home, essentially because the Arizona native was.
San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) on X Brock airs it out to Kittle đ€© đș: FOX NFL+ // https://t.co/KTh0i4oaLh
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The 49ers quarterback grew up in Queen Creek, Arizona, just about 55 miles away from State Farm Stadium, where the Cardinals play, providing Purdy with some relief as he was able to share the moment with family and friends from back home.
In his first game back after missing over six weeks of action, Purdy had himself a solid three-touchdown outing, providing the offense with a much-needed spark after a stifling divisional loss to Los Angeles last game.
He completed 19 out of his 26 passes, logging 200 yards total, but the 49ers’ offense appears to be a new machine with their QB1 back in charge.
Here’s three key takeaways from Brock Purdy’s first game back:
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Limiting Turnovers
It can be said that Mac Jones was a solid backup for the 49ers as Purdy rehabbed from injury; however, his biggest problem while leading the San Francisco offense was turning the ball over.
In the six weeks Jones started for Purdy following week four, he threw five interceptions, accounting for at least one in each 49er’s loss.
While this may not seem significant due to the 49ers’ record with Purdy returning, there is a good chance that San Francisco would have had at least one more win had the ball not been turned over.
With Purdy now back in, the offense seems to have a bit more life to it and looked to be firing on all cylinders against the Cardinals.
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Spreading the Workload
For weeks on end, Christian McCaffrey had essentially been the 49ers’ workhorse while Brock Purdy remained sidelined. Still, with the gunslinger back in the lineup, some of McCaffrey’s workload was eased up as the playbook opened up against Arizona.
Purdy would find five different receivers on Sunday, spreading the ball around to most of the 49ers’ usual pass catchers, outside of Ricky Pearsall, who ended the game with only one target.
San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) on X We get to witness CMC đ€Ż
McCaffrey logged only 13 carries and five receptions, giving the veteran back a much-needed relief following the tenacious work he’s put in the past several weeks.
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Scoring at Will
In Purdy’s first game back, the offense not only spread the ball around but also scored at will, with not a single quarter where the team failed to come away with points offensively.
It can be said that Sky Moore’s 98-yard kickoff return set up the first score, and Robert Saleh’s defense had three takeaways, which also contributed to the momentum.
However, it is still up to the offense to get into the end zone and put points on the board.
San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) on X The People’s Tight End gets TWO today đ đș: FOX NFL+ // https://t.co/KTh0i4oaLh
George Kittle was able to log his first multi-touchdown game this season, tallying 63 yards on six catches, while Christian McCaffrey also logged three touchdowns of his own.
