49ers quarterback Brock Purdy finds himself in unfamiliar territory heading into Monday night’s matchup against the Minnesota Vikings.
He’s coming off a regular-season loss.
Purdy won his first 10 career regular-season starts since taking over under center for good in the Bay last December. That streak ended last week in the 49ers’ disappointing 19-17 road loss to the Cleveland Browns.
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Purdy struggled for the first time in his NFL career, throwing for 125 yards, one touchdown and one interception on 12-of-27 passing.
“Brock missed a couple [throws], so it wasn't his best game,” Shanahan said Thursday. “I still thought he made some real good plays too. … Just because it was his first loss and his first pick of the year, I still thought there was a number of things he did real well in that game too.”
Purdy has passed every challenge thrown his way over the last 18 months, finding a way onto the 49ers’ 53-man roster out of training camp as a rookie and working his way up to the franchise trusting him as its quarterback of the future.
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So, how will he respond to getting back on the field after his first career regular-season loss?
“Same way he always does. I mean, we will see,” Shanahan said. “This is the first time responding to a loss, but in terms of not designating anything wins or losses. If we would've won in the last play of the game, he'd still have to respond the same way. So, it's him just doing his job and coming in here and being the same way he has been since the day we've met him.
“I don't think we're stressed about that too much because I've never seen a different guy.”
Even if Christian McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel don’t play Monday night, Purdy should have every opportunity for a bounce-back performance against a middle-of-the-pack Vikings defense at U.S. Bank Stadium.