Hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving, or a good week at the very least, if you don’t celebrate the holiday. I did what I do best: eat. And I have plenty of leftovers to get me through the weekend.
I also have a mailbag full of questions from you to get through. Thanks again to all who joined in on the feed. If you want to see your question answered (With a potentially good/bad take), just hit up the feed on my weekly requests for questions.
Keep those questions coming, too—love generating discussion on anything to do with our favorite team.
Can we have an honest discussion about the Purdy INT issue? It seems that we immediately drop into the twilight zone where either you are all in BP Stan or you are a hater troll. He is giving the ball to the other team with far too much frequency since the start of 2024. Is it just PTSD in the fanbase dating back to the Trey/Jimmy wars or even deeper rooted childhood issues from the Joe/Steve thing?
But seriously, too many damn turnovers, right?
—CanWeCloneJoe?
Im still upset about Brocks INTs. Something is very very wrong. Will Shanny be forced to bench a $200+M QB if it continues?
—70sNineeFan
How many more games like the last one until Brock Purdy is benched?
—royd99
So, when do the 49ers bench Brock Purdy? I don’t know; how many more games can the Baltimore Ravens let Lamar Jackson play after two fumbles and a pick? This week’s Thursday night game had the quarterback struggle against the Cincinnati Bengals. Now, Brock Purdy is not Lamar Jackson, but Jackson still played poorly.
My point is, quarterbacks have bad days. Brock Purdy had a bad day. I’m not saying it’s not concerning (it is), but it’s not something that should have him looking over his shoulder this season or even next. He’s still developing, and he is also playing on a foot that he may still be dealing with, whether he admits it or not.
We’ve seen how Purdy plays in the playoffs, the big games, and we’ve also seen him have bad days. Right now, nothing has me saying we need to bench him. I think his deal is fair for both sides, and he’s worth it.
I do think the 49ers would benefit from competition at the position in the 2026 offseason. I don’t think they’d be fooling anybody with such a competition, since Purdy has a few dead-money hits in 2028 and 2029. Perhaps drafting a quarterback in the 2027 draft is a move as well. Competition gets you the best out of anyone, just ask Joe Montana and Steve Young.
But once you pull that trigger, be ready for anything. As with those two aforementioned quarterbacks, some relationships were permanently damaged.
Understandably much talk from the Panthers game centered around (perhaps dwelled on is the better description) Purdy’s 3 picks. But there was a positive development that jumped out to me more than anything, and that was the play of the Safety duo of Mustapha and Brown. The 2 picks stood out to anyone watching the game or stats after, but what really jumped out to me was how well they did everything, especially tackling, and playing off each other.
Do you think it was just a “good day at the office,” or might it be that our young duo has turned a corner?
A major development at Safety makes a huge difference to the performance of the defense as a whole.
—NYNiners
You all remember when Brown had a strong start as a rookie, then struggled, and now has figured things out? What’s that thing? Time? Development? Wow, isn’t that nice? I haven’t read much Brown hate on social media lately, either.
Anyways, I think the 49ers saw what they had in Brown and thought they could replace Talanoa Hufanga rather than pay that contract he got with the Denver Broncos. And once Brown got some time and good coaching, he developed. Many of Brown’s struggles came from atrocious assignments by Steve Wilks/Nick Sorensen.
I do think the duo has potential. I also think the Panthers’ offense is turnover-prone. The 49ers are a defense that didn’t have an interception for weeks, going back to last season, and they notch two? I think that might have more to say about the signal caller on the other side.
But that isn’t to take anything away from them. It’s a good day at the office, but we need to see things like we saw with the Panthers against more capable, experienced quarterbacks like Matthew Stafford. Because when they start throwing, the 49ers suffer. That’s more a pass-rush issue than anything, but this is a good duo that can only get better once the 49ers solidify the defensive line. The fact that the secondary as a whole (not just Brown/Mustapha) can follow safeties around while the quarterback gets an eternity in the pocket is a positive. If the pass rush could get home, we’d see a much different secondary.
how much wood could you lay and be good if a dumb punk punches your nuts?
you gotta read it>n the same cadence of how much wood could a woodchuck, anyway, so does this mean that Jennings is not going to get suspended? by the time you probably answer we’ll already know, but on day one it looks like he might be okay
so I guess the real question is shouldn’t this be how the league handles instigative stuff like this, if you punish the retaliator it doesn’t cut down on nonsense, in fact it encourages it. but if you go after the instigator and disincentivize instigation I suppose wouldn’t that be the best approach to prevent BS in the future?
We already know what’s happened in the low blow to Jauan Jennings. Jennings is facing a fine, while Carolina Panthers safety Tre’von Moehrig is suspended for a game and lost the appeal.
That said, the issue with Jennings was that the retaliation was premeditated. Had he jumped on Moehrig right after the incident, it would have been a different problem. Instead, he waited until after the game (which was pretty smart to prevent penalties) and took a shot at him.
There are two things I would like done with these.
One: the NFL needs to be following unsportsmanlike conduct much more closely and have zero tolerance for either retaliation or instigation. Players should have confidence that if someone commits a cheap shot, they will be flagged immediately, no questions asked, or face punishment the following week. Retaliate, and you are flagged as well. If a scrum happens, stop the game, see who is involved, and eject appropriately. The NBA does this, but why the NFL can’t is beyond me. In my proposal, the instigation, if left alone, would need a grievance after the game (Jennings says he had a cheap shot, the NFL reviews, and again—suspends Moehrig). Based on the issue we watched, there will be suspensions for both. Again, zero tolerance.
Two: If you’re going to take a swing at a player, do it when they take their bonnet off. I’m more concerned about Jennings taking a shot at a player with their helmet on and risking a broken hand. I’ve never understood haymakers on helmeted players; it seems like it’d hurt the thrower more than the recipient. If you’ve ever punched someone in the face, it’s not like the movies; if you do it right, your hand is going to hurt, possibly be broken, depending on the force. Add a helmet to that? Just seems even more painful.
When will KS try something different with the game plan? We are way too conservative and predictable.
—70sNineeFan
Probably when he has his starters back and knows their strengths, Shanahan’s working with what he has, and right now he has to put an offensive game plan together with a defense that has half of its line injured and an offensive line that has a couple of issues (but they are definitely stepping up, foot in my mouth on that one).
If you want a less conservative plan this week, you will be disappointed. The weather in Cleveland is going to be snowy, which means a lot of ground-and-pound. It also means a slippery football, so fumbles and picks are going to happen, and it’s the elements, not Brock Purdy’s fault.
What’s your favorite Thanksgiving dessert? Mine’s pecan pie but pumpkin will do in a pinch, with some (gif of whiped cream on a bald head).
—Bully Baller
I’m going to get mobbed here, but I’m not the biggest pumpkin pie fan. I don’t hate it, but I realized that with pumpkin pie, I need a lot of whipped cream and other sugars to enjoy the pumpkin itself. Seems like pumpkin spice goes better with coffee, peanut butter, beer, but not a pie filling.
So if I’m just going to eat something that needs sugar, then damn it, I need to do it right. So I make a chocolate marbled peanut butter pie. I make a peanut butter filling with cream cheese, then add drops of melted milk chocolate. This year, I melted a Hershey’s bar instead of chocolate chips. While it was still delicious, it definitely had a different taste. Also, do an Oreo crust. It is the most unhealthy thing to eat, but since I’m pretty basic the rest of the year, I can stand to add a pound or two.
About the Author: Insidethe49
