The San Francisco 49ers had two players in the MVP race back in 2023 with QB Brock Purdy and RB Christian McCaffrey both delivering outstanding seasons on their way to a Super Bowl appearance.
Well, one NFL writer believes Purdy still has a chance at securing the MVP award that eluded him a couple of seasons ago with a big bounce-back year in 2025.
Brock Purdy Predicted to Win League MVP in 2025
Vic Tafur of The Athletic doesn’t appear deterred whatsoever by Brock Purdy’s shaky 2024 campaign because he boldly predicted that the 49ers QB will win league MVP in 2025.
“The 49ers have the (healthy) star power, coaching, young defensive talent and easy schedule to bounce back from last year’s 6-11 record and make a playoff run. Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle can’t win MVP, because one’s a running back and the other is a tight end,” wrote Tafur. “Purdy has the talent and narrative — going from Mr. Irrelevant to newly paid franchise QB, plus will get even more credit as the Niners are patching together their receiving corps to start the season. Oh, and we almost forgot: The 49ers just signed Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Four of the last five NFL MVPs had MVS on their Week 1 roster: Aaron Rodgers, Rodgers again, Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen.”
Purdy is coming off an up-and-down season with 3,864 passing yards and 20 touchdowns to go with a career-high 12 interceptions. These numbers aren’t terrible by any stretch of the imagination, but they were a far cry from his 2023 stat line of 4,280 passing yards and 31 touchdown passes.
Context matters when trying to assess where things went a bit sideways for Purdy in 2024. Injuries to Christian McCaffrey, Brandon Aiyuk, and Trent Williams all had a significant impact on the offensive output we’ve previously seen from the Purdy-led Niners.
Additionally, Deebo Samuel’s explosive playmaking rate dropped significantly, which actually led to Jauan Jennings producing a career year when pressed into a larger role with Aiyuk’s injury.
Despite the down year by the high bar Purdy set for himself through the first two years of his career, the 49ers still felt confident enough in the seventh-round pick to sign him to a $265 million contract extension this offseason.
Could the Injuries to 49ers WR Room Hurt Purdy’s Chances at an MVP Bid in 2025?
If this Purdy MVP prediction were to come true, it would likely come off of a huge statistical year from the Iowa State product in 2025.
Is Purdy capable of generating MVP-caliber numbers? Yes, his 2023 production is proof of that.
Is Purdy capable of generating MVP-caliber numbers with Ricky Pearsall as his WR1? That feels far more uncertain.
Jason Katz of Pro Football Sports Network wrote, “Purdy’s weapons are far more uncertain. George Kittle remains his most trusted option, especially as Brandon Aiyuk recovers from ACL reconstruction. Deebo Samuel Sr. is gone — although to be fair, that’s addition by subtraction, at least based on the guy we saw last season. It remains to be seen whether Jauan Jennings and/or Ricky Pearsall can step up over a full season. And, of course, McCaffrey needs to stay healthy,” when discussing Purdy’s statistical outlook entering the 2025 NFL season.
The sooner Aiyuk and Jennings can return to the lineup, the better Purdy’s chances are for an MVP bid. If both of those receivers miss a significant amount of time this season, then the offense is far more likely to return to greatness on the shoulders of a healthy Christian McCaffrey in 2025.