Brock Purdy Shakes Off Early Jitters in Thursday Night Victory
A high volume blitz attack from the Giants had the 49ers offense off kilter early but strong in-game adjustments for the second straight week led to an easy victory and 3-0 start.
The San Francisco 49ers are off to a hot start to the season with three straight 30 point games, the most recent one coming in their Thursday Night victory over the New York Giants. Week 3 wasn’t as smooth sailing as previous weeks without star wideout Brandon Aiyuk but some good in game-adjustments for the second straight week, this time from the offense, have the 49ers sitting at the top of the NFC pecking order.
A week after the defense started out slow in Los Angeles it was the offenses turn to come out the gates sluggish in Week 3. Facing a Wink Martindale defense known for its aggression the 49ers offense, particularly QB Brock Purdy (#13) struggled early on. The Giants blitzed Purdy on 79.2% of his first half snaps and did a good job disrupting his rhythm.
His first drive featured two poor throws that required 49ers receivers to convert to DB mode, one that even elicited a seat belt celebration from TE George Kittle (#85).
The pressure didn’t just impact Purdy’s ability to push the ball down the field but also bled into the short game where he is usually so sharp. He had trouble just hitting the swing routes and quick slants that are staples in the 49ers offense.
As San Francisco waited for their QB to get back into his groove they utilized their talented skill position players to keep the offense on track, particularly Deebo Samuel (#19). A heavy dose of screen passes allowed Samuel and RB Christian McCaffery to use their elite YAC ability to create yardage out of thin air. They each had a couple huge third and long conversions on passes that were caught behind the line of scrimmage.
Eventually Purdy was able to start adjusting to the blitzes, and began getting the ball out quicker and more accurately. His touchdown to Ronnie Bell at the end of the first half was an excellent display of poise and accuracy to throw into the oncoming blitz while fading away, putting it exactly where he wanted. It looked very similar to the play earlier in the game that required Samuel to work back toward the ball and break up the pass,.
The 49ers coaching staff also made their own adjustments to help turn the offense around. In the 2nd Half they did a better job of protecting Purdy with 6 and 7 man protections to give him time to attack downfield. Given San Francisco’s superior playmakers on the outside it was only a matter of time before the Giants unsustainable blitz rate cost them. The 4th Quarter TD pass to Deebo Samuel that essentially sealed the game was a perfect example of the adjustments made by both Purdy and the staff.
Despite a rocky start to the game, the offense once again finished with 30 points and had an EPA/Dropback of 0.441! as well as a Success Rate of 47.5%, all while facing a defense utilizing a 84.6% Blitz Rate. It may not have been perfect but in-game adjustments and great final result are exactly what you want to see from a championship caliber team.
Things on the defensive side of the ball went a lot smoother for the 49ers. The talent gap between the two teams on this side of the ball was apparent from the get go and the Giants offense behind an backup offensive line stood no chance. New York was only able to manage 12 points on 150 yards while going 3/13 on third down with a 36.7% Success Rate. On 34 dropbacks the 49ers had 23 Pressures and it came via a group effort with four players accumulating 3+ Pressures and Win Rate over 18%.
The 49ers themselves were no strangers to the blitz on Thursday, sending 5+ men on over 30% of their snaps. Some came via traditional looks, MLB Fred Warner was sent 6 separate times in the game, but most came with a fifth defensive lineman on the field. Bringing on backup IDL Javon Kinlaw (#99) allowed the 49ers to get 1 on 1 looks across the line of scrimmage, and given their talent advantage at all three levels it allowed them to get consistent pressure without giving up big plays on the back end. In the two clips below you can see how no matter what the Giants did one of the San Francisco defensive lineman was able to get and win a 1 on 1, forcing QB Daniel Jones to sack a sack or throw it away.
Despite a sloppy start the 49ers were able to dominant on both sides of the ball enroute to their third victory of the year. Leaving a Thursday game relatively healthy heading into a mini-bye is also always a plus. Next on the slate is an Arizona Cardinals team fresh off the biggest upset of the season, after taking now NFC powerhouse the Dallas Cowboys.