What Brock Purdy has to do for the 49ers to bench him

He's flirting with a benching.

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The San Francisco 49ers are going to have to make a season, and potentially franchise-altering decision at quarterback. The sample is still too small, but after Brock Purdy now has more interceptions in four starts than Mac Jones had in eight starts. 49ers fans have to wonder how long the leash is for Brock Purdy.

San Francisco 49ers will stick with Brock Purdy through the bad

The answer is likely longer than some fans will want, depending on how you feel. Even after a three-interception performance and even after seeing Kyle Shanahan appear to put the training wheels on for Purdy in the second half it is hard to think the 49ers are going to move off of Purdy. 

The first reason is that the team won. As long as the 49ers are winning with their quarterback, it is hard to find a real problem. More than that, the 49ers are committed to Brock Purdy. They believe that their path to the Super Bowl involves Purdy playing his best at the right time. Giving Purdy the next six games to work out his issues is helpful for the 49ers, as they think that if things can click for Purdy in January, it is going to spark more than what Jones brings. 

So, even if Purdy continues to play poorly for the next couple of weeks, it is hard to think that the 49ers are going to bench him for Jones. 

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The question is whether that is the right decision or not. The 49ers quarterback position has often been plug-and-play. Jimmy Garoppolo started off on fire when the 49ers initially traded for him, and Nick Mullens went on a dynamic run. You can typically drop anyone into this offense if the pieces are healthy, and things will flow. 

So, Jones brings a high floor. Even without the ceiling, if the 49ers just sustain consistent offense, does that give them a better chance? Would Jones' eight starts plus anything he has left be more valuable than Purdy, who will finish ten starts maximum? If Purdy continues to turn the ball over at twice the rate of Jones, can they really go into the playoffs with him?

We saw the 49ers move off of Alex Smith for Colin Kaepernick, and it benefited the team. Whether it be Dak Prescott over Tony Romo or even Mason Rudolph helping the Steelers make the 2023 playoffs by unseating first-round pick Kenny Pickett, we have seen teams move off of players who were claimed to be the franchise guy, only to see that team go on a bit of a streak shortly after. 

Purdy will likely get all six games, but the noise should get a lot louder if two more games are of this level.