Brock Purdy isn’t approaching this year’s playoffs like he did a year ago.
The 49ers quarterback has had an entire season, especially the last two weeks, to reflect on one of his young career’s defining moments: his impressive showing in the 2023 NFL playoffs, which saw a then-23-year-old quarterback lead the 49ers to the NFC Championship Game.
So much has changed for and around Purdy since.
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“I feel like it’s a little different,” Purdy told reporters Wednesday after practice. “You know, just last year [I] was still trying to find my way in a sense. I got thrown in towards the end of the year, and so every single week I was still trying to play good and learn who I was as a quarterback, and, obviously, get more familiar with playing within the system. Those are all things that were sort of on my plate last year and obviously trying to win every single week and get this team to the end.
“So now, this year being much more familiar with the offense, who I am and all that, it’s a little different. But it’s good to watch the games from last year and sort of remember the feelings and the emotions of playing in a playoff game. It’s good. It’s huge for me as a quarterback to go back to those moments and sort of remember what it feels like. Those are things I’m sort of banking on.”
Digging through the film and putting himself in the shoes he was in this time last year has served as an effective reminder of what it took to win two playoff games for Purdy, who went into his first postseason as the last pick of the 2022 NFL Draft.
San Francisco 49ers
After an incredible first playoff run which ended when Purdy tore his UCL against the Philadelphia Eagles, and the 49ers' single-season passing record now under his belt, the quarterback looks ahead with newfound experience and wisdom.
“I feel like the first game was a little bit tense just in terms of every play mattered: not trying to turn the ball over, but at the same time, making plays still and winning and doing what it takes to win,” Purdy said.
“Those are things I sort of had to learn. And watching the film, you get back into that feeling of last year. That first time in a playoff game. It’s good to remember those kinds of things moving forward, [and] understanding what to expect for the first playoff game this year for me.”
Days removed from the 49ers’ second Lombardi Trophy pursuit with Purdy at the helm, the quarterback has made it clear that there is a mindset shift in him from last year – and it’s certainly for the better.