After going undefeated through the first five weeks of the 2023 NFL season, Brock Purdy and the 49ers were humbled in back-to-back losses to the Cleveland Browns and Minnesota Vikings.
In both defeats, the only regular-season losses of Purdy's young career, the quarterback threw at least one interception. And in the "Monday Night Football" loss to the Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium, he was picked off twice late in the fourth quarter -- the first multi-interception game of his career.
After the loss, Purdy took full accountability for the turnovers.
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"Just bad ball," Purdy explained to reporters postgame. "JJ [Jauan Jennings] did a good job on his route and the D-line got a good push on us and I sort of just was trying to anticipate the throw. At the end of the day, it was a bad ball and obviously, I threw it too far ahead of him."
The first interception was intended for Jennings with a little more than five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
While it seemed like Jennings and Purdy might not have been on the same page, the ball was thrown way out of reach for the 49ers receiver and picked off by Vikings safety Camryn Bynum. Purdy said Jennings did what he was supposed to do, but he just misread it and made a bad throw.
"There's times where you get a push but there's times where you get a play. There's a timing of routes and where guys are supposed to be and whatnot," Purdy added. "That play, JJ did his job, he ran the right route, the right timing and everything. I just got pushed and sort of lost sight of him and just anticipated it too far ahead of him. So that's just how it was. He did a good job."
San Francisco 49ers
The second interception came with time winding down in the closing seconds of the game. In a pass intended for Ray-Ray McCloud, it was Bynum once again there for the catch and eventual game-sealing interception.
With time expiring and the game on the line, Purdy admitted that he might have tried to force it a little.
"Thirty-four seconds left. Trying to strain and make a play," Purdy said. "That was the shot within the play to hit Ray-Ray coming across the middle and then that middle safety did a good job. I was trying to throw it over him, trying to force it. You got to learn from it and I think I could've ran and got down or whatever. I just forced it."
Of course, football is a team sport. And no matter how much Purdy shoulders the blame for the team's second straight loss, San Francisco's early fumble, a missed field-goal attempt and unrecognizable defense put the 49ers in a doable, but tough position to win the game.
For now, they'll shift their focus to Week 8 as they head back home to face Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals.