Fox Sports Ranks 49ers QB Brock Purdy 15th Among NFL Quarterbacks

The 49ers officially made Brock Purdy the seventh-highest-paid quarterback in the NFL this offseason.

Unfortunately for the 49ers, no one considers Purdy the seventh-best quarterback in the league. Most people don't even consider him in the top 10. In fact, Fox Sports recently ranked all 32 starting quarterbacks, and Purdy finished 15th.

"The 49ers lost their way offensively in 2024, and it wasn’t just because of injuries," writes Fox Sports' Henry McKenna. "Yes, Purdy was sorting out how to manage a locker room, a huddle and a game plan without his best players. But I also think Kyle Shanahan was doing that in a season where teams schematically caught up to the 49ers’ system."

This is fair criticism. It's easy to point out Brock Purdy's statistical regression because he has stats. It's much more difficult to prove that teams have caught up to Shanahan's system, but if you watch the film, you can see that he hasn't evolved much schematically since 2021. That was Mike McDaniel's final season on the coaching staff.

In 2021, the 49ers brilliantly moved Deebo Samuel from wide receiver to running back, and he carried them to the NFC Championship. Since then, Shanahan's best idea has been to give the ball to Christian McCaffrey as much as he can physically handle. Unfortunately for the 49ers, McCaffrey may not be able to handle much more. He broke down last season.

This offseason, Purdy got an extension and Shanahan did not. That means Shanahan needs to prove that he still is the best head coach for the 49ers' franchise quarterback.

The burden of proof is on Shanahan.