Brock Purdy was outstanding in defeat for the San Francisco 49ers last Sunday even as they suffered an upset at the hands of the Los Angeles Rams.
But a moment of indecision from the 49ers quarterback proved crucial in San Francisco failing to close out the Rams in the fourth quarter despite having a 10-point lead.
With the 49ers attempting to ice the game up 24-17 in the fourth quarter with a little over four minutes remaining, Purdy had a chance to hit a wide open Brandon Aiyuk on a deep shot that almost certainly would have resulted in a game-winning completion and likely a touchdown.
Purdy did not throw the ball to Aiyuk and, after a scramble drill, found Jauan Jennings for a five-yard gain. Three plays later, Jake Moody sent a 55-yard field goal attempt wide left, critically giving the Rams a short field.
On the surface, it was a head-scratching decision by Purdy. However, earlier this week, head coach Kyle Shanahan explained that Aiyuk was open because of a coverage bust but Purdy had been unwilling to throw the ball because the blown coverage left him unable to identify where the safety was.
Asked on Thursday about the play from his perspective, Purdy told a press conference: "I'm going through my reads. Obviously, there was a route that I thought he [Aiyuk] was going to run, but he felt grass man, and went and took it. And, you know, when we're watching it after it's like, yes, that's that's the right thing to do.
"In that moment for me, I'm going through my progression, and I'm concerned about the safety and and then I see him go deep, and I feel like he's open, and I'm like, 'something's not right', you know, in my mind, per what we have drawn up and so, but that's something that we both have to be on the same page moving forward with if he has stuff like that that happens, and it's not being dumb and just running deep every time, but like, actually, there's a reason for why you're going deep.
"There's some communication stuff that we've talked about where we can take that opportunity. He did the right thing. I have to pull the trigger in that moment and be ready for it. So, you know, something that we had to learn, and then the heat of the moment, that time of the game, situational football, trying to protect the ball, be smart with it, but also be aggressive. And then that happens, and it's like, man, I don't know exactly where the safety's at, so all of those put together, that's what happened in the moment."
Purdy has shown he can handle a lot during his still relatively brief time as an NFL starting quarterback. On that occasion, however, he did not have the right answer when the Niners needed it most, though he insisted the misunderstanding with Aiyuk was not a product of the receiver's long offseason contract saga .
"If that was Jauan Jennings and that would have happened, I don't know if I'm throwing that ball either," he added.
"I'm just saying, like, in the heat of the moment when you have a route on, you end up taking some grass and going deep for the right reasons. You know, how are we on the same page? So that I can let that go? That was a new situation for myself and all the receivers and everybody in the room."
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