Brock Purdy torched Dallas on Sunday night in a 42-10 victory, the most lopsided result in the history of the 49ers-Cowboys rivalry.
The second-year quarterback went 17-of-24 passing with four touchdowns, took just one sack, and didn’t turn the ball over before being replaced by Sam Darnold early in the fourth quarter.
Purdy is the first quarterback to initiate a career with a 10-0 winning streak since Ben Roethlisberger in 2004-05 and is one of only four to achieve this feat since 1950, the year when quarterback starts began being recorded. Additionally, according to Elias Sports Bureau, Purdy is the fourth quarterback in the past 30 seasons to have four or more touchdown passes and zero interceptions in a game against the team with the highest scoring defense entering that week (in Week 4 or later).
“He’s just so consistent and he just continues to go out there and prove people wrong,” fullback Kyle Juszczyk said, via ESPN. “I’m happy that he’s able to go out here and have a four-touchdown game on national television because, not that it matters what people on the outside are saying about him, but he deserves more respect than what he gets, I think. I hope he gets a little bit of that from this.”
After five weeks, Purdy holds the top rank in passer rating with 123.1, is second in yards per attempt with 9.3 and completion percentage at 72.1%, is tied at seventh place for pass TDs with 9, and is eighth in yards with 1,271.
“I mean, he was really good,” coach Kyle Shanahan said of Purdy’s performance Sunday night. “Everybody was pretty good. But thought he missed one throw throughout the day, from what it seemed like, just a little behind [Brandon Aiyuk] in the first quarter on one and everything else seemed pretty flawless. He did a great job versus a real good pass rush, some tight coverages, guys gave him some time. Also, the guys made a lot of plays, too.”
The Cowboys and 49ers both saw Sunday’s prime-time game as a benchmark for their standing in the NFC. Following the one-sided outcome, it’s evident where the dominance lies.
The Niners, along with the Philadelphia Eagles, are the only teams in the NFL with a 5-0 record. However, this fast start doesn’t have Shanahan celebrating just yet.
“When asked about the importance of defeating a rival, he said, “Absolutely nothing.” He then added, “We would’ve been 4-1 had we lost this game, but now we’re 5-0. Sure, it’s thrilling and enjoyable, but having spent a long time in the NFL, I’ve been 5-0 and not made the playoffs. So, all these things don’t really hold much significance.”
Throughout the week, people’s perception of the situation differed from ours. I conveyed to our team last night that irrespective of the outcome of this game, it should serve as a learning curve. If we play to our full potential, we should feel a sense of accomplishment and use that as motivation to improve for the next week. Even if we suffer defeat, provided we approach it correctly, it should still contribute to our future growth. It’s important to participate in such challenging games as they prepare us for any scenario that might occur later in the season.
While it feels great to be at 5-0, I’m happy we chose a different approach. However, this victory doesn’t hold significance until we reach the finish line.
The 49ers have managed to score over 30 points in eight consecutive regular-season games since 2022, marking the fifth-longest streak in NFL history. Notably, the main quarterbacks during the four longest streaks each received an NFL MVP award in that period. These include Kurt Warner (1999-2000), Tom Brady (2010-11 and 2006-07), and Peyton Manning (2012-13).
