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Former NFL OC Says the 49ers Must Allow Brock Purdy to Adjust Protections

"I think the quarterback has to be able to redirect your protections. He can see the whole field. His head is on a swivel. He can see boundary to boundary."
Grant Cohn|
Feb 11, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (13) under center against the Kansas City Chiefs in the first half in Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 11, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (13) under center against the Kansas City Chiefs in the first half in Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports | Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

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San Francisco 49ers

I recently asked former Raiders offensive coordinator Tom Walsh what the 49ers offense needs to work on during training camp this year. Here's what he said.

WALSH: "My chief concern with all the talent they have at quarterback, running back, wide receiver and tight end, I would be focused on making sure as a play designer that I have pass protection that will afford our quarterback the best protection possible. I go back to two years in the playoffs against the Eagles when Kyle Shanahan had that play-action scheme in which he brought a backup tight end across the formation post-snap to block Hasson Reddick who was the leader sacker in the NFL. Sometimes you have the greatest ideas, but let's back up and think about how logically constructed they are. Protection is the key. Your passing game starts with pass protection. I cannot have the quarterback getting drilled."

ME: Just a few months ago in the Super Bowl, the 49ers were 3 for 12 on third down despite all their talent on offense because they gave up 9 unblocked rushers to the Chiefs. What was the breakdown?

WALSH: "I don't know if Kyle allows Brock Purdy to re-mike and redirect the protection."

ME: That's the center's responsibility in the 49ers offense.

WALSH: "The center cannot see all the way out to the sidelines. On defense, you have slot defenders and secondary defenders who are high who can prowl and move around. The center has his head down -- he's looking at kneecaps and socks. How can he see a secondary guy 12 yards deep who might be stacked behind a slot defender who's over your slot receiver? I think the quarterback has to be able to redirect your protections. He can see the whole field. His head is on a swivel. He can see boundary to boundary."

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Grant Cohn
GRANT COHN

Grant Cohn has covered the San Francisco 49ers daily since 2011. He spent the first nine years of his career with the Santa Rosa Press Democrat where he wrote the Inside the 49ers blog and covered famous coaches and athletes such as Jim Harbaugh, Colin Kaepernick and Patrick Willis. In 2012, Inside the 49ers won Sports Blog of the Year from the Peninsula Press Club. In 2020, Cohn joined FanNation and began writing All49ers. In addition, he created a YouTube channel which has become the go-to place on YouTube to consume 49ers content. Cohn's channel typically generates roughly 3.5 million viewers per month, while the 49ers' official YouTube channel generates roughly 1.5 million viewers per month. Cohn live streams almost every day and posts videos hourly during the football season. Cohn is committed to asking the questions that 49ers fans want answered, and providing the most honest and interactive coverage in the country. His loyalty is to the reader and the viewer, not the team or any player or coach. Cohn is a new-age multimedia journalist with an old-school mentality, because his father is Lowell Cohn, the legendary sports columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle from 1979 to 1993. The two have a live podcast every Tuesday. Grant Cohn grew up in Oakland and studied English Literature at UCLA from 2006 to 2010. He currently lives in Oakland with his wife.

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