The arguments suggesting San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy is merely a byproduct of his environment — a position-friendly offense, coupled with elite playmakers surrounding him — have largely dissipated over the course of 2024.
Despite the Niners owning a 3-3 record, and ahead of a high-profile Super Bowl rematch against quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 7, Purdy is arguably playing the best football of his young career, proving that it doesn’t exactly matter where a player is selected in the NFL Draft.
Rather, what said player does with the opportunity.
Still, some would argue Purdy’s numbers are merely inflated by both the scheme and his supporting cast, sometimes referring to the San Francisco signal-caller as a “dink and dunk” quarterback with a weak arm who relies on yards after the catch to drive up his statistics.
Considering the 49ers offense under head coach Kyle Shanahan has long been associated with YAC, the antiquated argument makes some sense.
Except the actual numbers tell an entirely different story, one that makes Purdy look Mahomes-like.
And Mahomes much more Purdy-ish, at least in terms of the latter’s previous reputation.
Patrick Mahomes, not Brock Purdy relies way more on YAC
Without looking, if you had to pick which quarterback between Purdy and Mahomes was leading the NFL entering Week 7 in yards per completion, who would you pick?
A casual fan would likely choose Mahomes, right? After all, his strong arm within head coach Andy Reid’s offense calls for such plays.
But the correct answer is actually Purdy, whose 13.5 yards per completion rank No. 1 in qualifying ranks (he also led the NFL in this category a year ago, too, in case you were wondering).
OK, so Purdy’s average here has to be inflated by YAC, right? His weapons, including pass catchers like Deebo Samuel and George Kittle, are known for picking up chunk yards after the catch.
Well, not exactly. At least not this year.
As CBS Sports’ Douglas Clawson pointed out, Purdy has the fewest YAC to his benefit of qualifying quarterbacks this season, whereas Mahomes has the most:
“Here’s one stat that should catch your eye as the 49ers get set to host the Chiefs in a Super Bowl rematch on Sunday. Brock Purdy has the lowest percentage of yards after catch (33%) in the NFL this season. Patrick Mahomes has the highest (65%) this year. And it’s actually the highest by any quarterback on record. So nobody relies less on YAC than Purdy. And nobody relies on it more than Mahomes.”
The conclusion is simple: Mahomes relies far more on his targets to make more out of his passes than Purdy (or anyone else in the league, for that matter), whereas Purdy is taking the deeper shots and putting up significantly more air yards in the process.
Clawson also mentioned no other quarterback has more 15-yard-plus completions (27) than any other quarterback in 2024, and further metrics back it up even more.
According to Next Gen Stats, Purdy’s 9.1 completed air yards rank No. 2 behind only the Indianapolis Colts’ Anthony Richardson (10.2), while Mahomes’ 3.6 are next to lowest in the league, ahead of only the Miami Dolphins’ injured signal-caller, Tua Tagovailoa (2.8).
Telling, isn’t it?
Now, few would argue Purdy has surpassed Mahomes on the current pantheon of quarterbacks. The latter has three Super Bowl rings, owns insane regular-season records and is a two-time NFL MVP.
That said, Purdy is besting Mahomes in one particular important area, and that’ll undoubtedly be a focal point when the two square off against each other in Week 7.
