Charvarius Ward has proven to be one of the San Francisco 49ers’ wiser free agent signings. He was paid based on what he could become rather than a single outstanding contract year, and boy, did he deliver. Ward played for the Kansas City Chiefs before the 49ers, and he was a member of the Chiefs team that defeated the 49ers in Super Bowl LIV.
Ward revealed on Arik Armstead’s Third and Long that the Chiefs planned to come back and win the championship game in the fourth quarter.
Yes, I realize it’s too soon.
For many fans, this comes as no surprise. When the second half arrived, it was clear that the Chiefs were daring the 49ers to throw. The
Of course, the most memorable blunder is the deep route that could have won the game, but Garoppolo overthrew Emmanuel Sanders. More vexing was Kyle Shanahan’s decision to abandon the run in the fourth quarter after it had been working all game. Some of the pass plays worked, but the lack of runs, while effective, left many fans perplexed.
But, if the Chiefs were basically daring them to throw, there you have it. And that’s what Garoppolo was paid to do: win games like that.
The Chiefs were not the only team to dare the 49ers to throw a touchdown pass. Many teams in the league used the same gameplan in 2019 and later seasons. This resulted in a slew of games in which throwing the ball felt like pulling teeth. Jimmy played well at times and threw those perplexing picks at others.
Regardless, no matter how much you want to compare Brock Purdy to Jimmy Garoppolo, that gameplan is probably no longer viable. Call him a game manager all you want, but it’s clear that Purdy’s floor on the 49ers is 2019 Jimmy Garoppolo. Perhaps even higher. What is Purdy’s limit? Nobody knows. We’ll get another look next week against the No. 2 ranked defense in the NFL, the Baltimore Ravens. We’ve already witnessed
Purdy has carved up good defenses such as the Dallas Cowboys, so the Ravens will be a good litmus test for where he stands.
The only doubt I had about Purdy was his ability to play an entire NFL season. I raised an eyebrow when he suffered a concussion in Minnesota and it appeared to worsen in the Cincinnati game (though it turns out that wasn’t the case). Purdy hasn’t missed a game yet, so that raised brow has returned to normal.
