49ers QB Brock Purdy is Slowly Building an MVP Season

It's still early, but it's tough to deny Brock Purdy has been extremely sharp.

Sep 20, 2026; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (13) reacts during the second half against the Miami Dolphins at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The San Francisco 49ers are off to a hot start this season with a 3-0 record after defeating the Arizona Cardinals.

It's been sensational to see how smoothly they have been operating, but no other player on the 49ers is playing as smoothly as Brock Purdy. He's played a big role in their hot start this season.

Over three games, Purdy has completed 60-of-83 passes (72.3%), thrown for 789 yards, and thrown for 9 touchdowns. The best part of all is that he's taking care of the football with only one interception.

Numbers like these are why he's being linked as the MVP.

AP NFL MVP odds from @betmgm:
Josh Allen +225#49ers Brock Purdy +450
Lamar Jackson +600
Joe Burrow +900
Patrick Mahomes +900
Trevor Lawrence +1500
Dak Prescott +2000

— Josh Dubow (@JoshDubowAP) September 28, 2026

It's tough to deny that Purdy is slowly building an MVP season. Again, he's been sweet, but it's been only three games. MVP discussions this early are asinine.

This is what fans and pundits did this time last year with Baker Mayfield. He was labeled the "early MVP" after four or five games. Then what happened?

He crumbled the rest of the season and wasn't remotely close to playing at a high level, let alone an MVP. Calling for a player to be an "early MVP" is driven by emotion.

It's a "prisoner of the moment" feeling, which is understandable for fans. You see Purdy killing it, leading the 49ers to incredible wins, and that leads to that.

But this talk needs to be tabled until November. That is why it's best to say he's slowly building an MVP season if he sustains this level of play.

He also needs to perform well against strong defenses, which the 49ers haven't faced yet. And no, the Los Angeles Rams don't have a great defense.

They just allowed Bo Nix, who is Jimmy Garoppolo 2.0, to light them up for 30 points. A defense that allows that cannot be taken seriously. Not one bit.

When the 49ers take on the Denver Broncos this week and the Seattle Seahawks after that, that is when Purdy will really strengthen his case.

Watching him perform well against average-to-poor teams/defenses isn't anything new. He's always done this. He knows how to take care of business, which deserves credit.

Now, he needs to show he can do it against playoff-caliber teams. It starts in Week 4 this Sunday when they play the Broncos.

If he plays really well against them and then against Seattle, the 49ers will have the best version of Purdy they've ever seen.

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