QB Brock Purdy Press Conference

QB Brock Purdy

Press Conference – August 4, 2024

San Francisco 49ers

These training camp practices, they’re pretty well scripted. I’m wondering, you don’t go off script much, how do you kind of work on your improvisational skills in camp or in the preseason?

“Once you get in the season, like a regular-season game, things break down. That’s part of football. Going off-schedule, finding guys in the scramble drill and all that kind of stuff. So when you’re in practice, you have your scripted plays and you want to be on time, you want to go through your progressions. But the minute something breaks down, for me, I’m still trying to treat it like a live rep. It really is for the receivers as well, for us to find each other, find open space and work on those kinds of things. If you just sit there and take a sack, which it might be in a game, but for practice, it’s like, ‘Hey, let’s continue to try to find something to work on.’ So that’s how I look at it.”

When you throw an interception in practice and watch it on film afterwards, what’s your process of assessing yourself on that play?

“It depends on what kind of pick it is. If I’m trying to fit it in a window and trying to just be aggressive or I just couldn’t see a guy, those are the questions you have to ask yourself. And that’s what I do, ask myself. And obviously, I get pretty mad at myself in terms of, ‘Dude, you turned the ball over and you can’t do that.’ So it’s finding a way to grow mentally for myself in terms of, ‘Dude, you can’t do that.’ Or, ‘Hey, I was being aggressive here and we’re just trying it out and I’m seeing if I can do it with this guy and that kind of window or that kind of look.’ But at the end of the day, I’m not out there trying to just throw the ball up and act like it’s camp and I don’t care, because I do.”

RB Jordon Mason was talking to us yesterday and said that he sunk three grand into a jugs machine and had his dad shoot him passes, tons during the offseason to upgrade his receiving skills. Have you noticed an upgrade in his receiving skills?

“Yeah, JP looks great. He’s on top of his stuff and just in terms of the run game and the fits and his pass protection, just seeing it as a running back, you could tell he is on it. And then when he gets out for check downs and he’s where he’s supposed to be. He’s got great hands. He is the kind of guy that we’re all, we’ve trusted in the past, but even more so now. He’s shown it time and time again and he’s building pretty good practices. So we’re excited about it. And obviously, the more guys in the running back room, the better. Proud of him.”

You’ve talked a lot about the physical and mental benefits of having that full offseason. From a leadership standpoint, have you felt just being out there every day and getting all those reps in the spring, just making you feel more comfortable in terms of commanding the huddle or just feeling like you’re in charge out there?

“When I first came in the NFL, as a rookie and even last year coming off the surgery and stuff, there’s a little timidness in terms of, alight, you go in, you have to say the play, you have to say it correctly, you break the huddle and what are my reads and this and that? But now it’s like, I feel good with the guys, with the language of the offense. I can see it in my mind quicker when coach calls a play. So it’s a lot more smooth for me and I love that, but I still have to find that edge every day of, alright, I have to find ways to be uncomfortable and still walk in the huddle, command it, break it, and not just think that the game’s easy, because it’s not. It’s never going to be easy. I have to continue to push myself in that way. But in terms of hearing the play, getting in the huddle, speaking to the guys, saying little things outside of the play like, ‘Hey, reminder this, that,’ I feel a lot better with that.”

Can you expound on that? How do you find ways to make yourself feel uncomfortable?

“Just the play clock. [Quarterbacks coach Brian] Griese has the play clock going up so I’m not back there thinking about the play all day, walking in the huddle. It’s having that sense of urgency like, ‘Alright, I know the play, I know what I have to do on this.’ It’s getting in the huddle, getting some sense of urgency, getting up to the clock, we have three seconds left. And even in practice, guys want to get set and then we motion. But my thing is walk up and, ‘Hey, let’s go. We don’t have time.’ Let’s make it more game realistic. So that’s the level that I’m at now with it.”

You mentioned you’re upset obviously with the training camp interceptions. Much was made of the other day you threw four picks in your last five attempts. After something like that, are you like, “Get out of my way. I’m super pissed.” Or is it just like, “Okay, I understand why these things happened.” What are your emotions? Because it became, whether you know it or not, a national story.

“I take pride in protecting the ball for our offense and our team. And so obviously, I’m mad when I’m not completing the ball to our guys and it’s going to the defense. I’m hard on myself and the coaches are too. We have a standard here. So it’s not, like I said, we’re just going out and just because it’s practice it’s okay to throw picks. No, there’s still a standard here. But with that is, I know you guys have heard me say this all over the media, but now’s the time to be trying out some stuff in terms of throwing some windows and some tight coverages and whatnot. But you know, I still have to grow. I still have to be better and I’m hard on myself with it. But now’s the time to do it. I remember last year coming off my UCL at practice, I was throwing some stuff, and I threw multiple days of picks. But you get into the season and you’re ready for those moments and you’re ready to execute and protect the ball. So that’s where we’re at in the time of year.”

You were on the field after practice, doing some extra reps with guys catching. What were you working on?

“Just some throwing on the run. I feel like at practice, I can continue to get better at throwing on the run and being in time when I’m throwing on the run. So today after practice I just wanted to hone in on, we have a day off tomorrow, so I wanted to get after it in terms of staying on the move, being accurate with the throws and trying to get better.”

A day like today with no WR Deebo Samuel, no RB Christian McCaffrey, no WR Brandon Aiyuk, guys you would be throwing to a lot of games. How does a day like today benefit you?

“It’s good. Obviously, we have our star players not getting a whole lot of reps, so we have other guys stepping up. And for me it’s, ‘Alright, regardless of the mismatches and all that kind of stuff, I’m going to drop back, go through my reads, and I have to be efficient regardless of not having my guys out there.’ So stepping up, going through reads, hitting [WR] Chris Conley over the middle, checking the ball down, being smart. It makes me play quarterback really efficiently. Not saying when they are on the field I’m not, but when they’re on the field, I’m a little, my antenna is up in terms of, ‘Alright, if I do get this look, I’m more tentative to throwing to Aiyuk or Deebo. So a day like this was good for me to just go through reads, take completions and be efficient.”

If a new receiver walks in the room, how long does it typically take you rep wise, before you feel real comfortable with that receiver?

“Maybe a couple weeks, to be honest. We have to go over so much detail within our routes, our concepts, our timing, all of that. It’s not a couple days and then you feel good and you’re ready to go play a game. It takes time, especially in this offense. Everything is so detailed within our offense and our scheme that I have to have a guy come in and learn and understand things and where to be and the timing of a concept, not doing too much in his route and stuff. All those things take time. I’d probably say a couple weeks if that were the case.”

It’s been almost a couple weeks with WR Ricky Pearsall what have been your kind of impressions of him as he goes through his first camp here?

“I think he’s getting better and better, just more comfortable within our offense, but I think we need more reps to throw him the ball, need more opportunities and looks. And that’ll come. I’m confident in that. But, last couple days, I’ve tried to get him the ball and stuff, and whether he is trying to get held or trying to get in and out of cuts, sometimes it is tough at practice because you don’t always get the cleanest look so you’re trying to make it happen. But, he’s doing a good job. He’s picking up the playbook. He’s learning it real well and from what we did in OTAs. Then he had a little setback with the hamstring, so we’ve just got to get back on track with that, but I’m confident that we will.”

It seems like the rapport and timing with Conley goes back to the Packers game of the playoffs on that out. In this camp, he’s been a much more featured target. With that rapport, how has it grown with him getting more reps with the first team and all that with you?

“Yeah, Chris has that veteran mindset. He’s smart. And sort of like what I was talking about, just in terms of he understands the details of our offense and he understands where he needs to be, the timing of the concepts and the plays. Chris, obviously he’s just got that older veteran-ness to him where he’s smart within plays and reads and he knows where to be and where we need him to be. So, we’ve grown obviously from last year in playoff games. There’s been some clutch plays between us. He’s been where he needs to be. So in camp he’s come in ready to roll. He’s got fresh legs. He’s moving quick. Like I said, we’ve been able to connect and that’s because he sees the defense really well and he’s supposed to be where he needs to be. He’s done a great job.”

With your preseason game plan, do you anticipate seeing the field next weekend?

“We haven’t talked about that, so just taking it one day at a time. I think it all just depends on how practices go and my reps and how I’m feeling and stuff. But, I’m sure we’ll make a decision here as the game comes closer.”

DB Deommodore Lenoir has earned a lot of praises in camp so far. What have you seen going up against him every day?

“He’s a baller man. He’s got just good ball instincts and he understands football well. He’s gotten more and more reps obviously as his career’s gone on. And for us, every time we walk up to the line and I see him see him in man coverage, I’m like, ‘alright, this is going to be a battle here.’ So he pushes our guys. He pushes me. I’ve got to be accurate with the ball because he’s going to be on the back hip pretty tightly and he’s made some really good plays. So going up against him and a bunch of the DBs, [CB Isaac Yiadom] Ike and obviously the linebackers in the middle and [S Ji’Ayir Brown] Tig in the back. We’ve got a great defense going up every rep. So, they’re all pushing us, but Demo’s doing a great job.”

What are your early impressions of QB Tanner Mordecai, the rookie?

“He’s come in and he’s just put his head down and he’s gone to work. He’s studied his butt off. In meetings, Griese is asking him a lot of the questions and stuff to push him and help him continue to develop and after practice he’s staying. Then when he has gotten his rep so far, the last couple days, he has done really well. He’s taken what the defense has given him, he has been ready for his opportunity. I’m happy to see his success and I know he is going to continue to grow. Tanner can rip it. So, I’m excited for him.”

I assume you’ve gotten a lot of opportunities to earn extra money and you probably haven’t taken them all. What is the process like? Is it your agent says, ‘Hey Brock, what about this?’ How is it presented to you? How do you decide if it sounds good?

“Yeah, for me, obviously I don’t make a whole lot. I make a good amount playing football. But just with the lifestyle and the privacy for my wife and I and the things that we’re able to do with my family outside of football, we’ve got to make some kind of money somehow. So marketing’s a great opportunity for us. So yeah, a business or an organization will hit up my agent and he’ll bring it to me and he’ll say, ‘hey, this aligns with who you are and what you believe or this might not, so we can pass on it.’ So, those are the decisions that go into it. But for me, like I said, I’m trying to provide for my wife and my family moving forward with our life because you never know. Tomorrow’s not promised. So, we’ve tried to be smart about it, but there’s been some good opportunities this offseason and that’s why I’ve been able to do some.”

You mentioned privacy. Is it to a point where it may even be practical for you, given you’ve reached a level of fame to be hanging out in some random apartment complex and having to say hi to everyone would make you leave? Is that what you’re getting at?

“Yeah, that or like, how do I describe it? Yeah, just security with our house, where we live and when we travel and stuff, being able to fly first class and do like those kinds of things. Ubers, the more expensive ones, where they are more private. I don’t know how to describe it, but I’m just thinking long-term for my wife and I. Yes, the privacy aspect, like with privacy comes expenses, and it’s a little bit more expensive with that kind of lifestyle. So that’s what I’m thinking of.”