Like so many San Francisco 49ers players, quarterback Brock Purdy dealt with injuries last season. He was limited to nine games in 2025 due to a turf toe injury but still completed 69.4% of his passes for 2,167 yards, 20 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions.
While fans only got to see Purdy for one drive during the preseason, the 49ers quarterback has looked sharp throughout training camp. Tight end George Kittle sat down with NBC Sports Bay Area ahead of the team's trip to Melbourne, Australia, and shared what fans can expect from the franchise quarterback in 2026.
"He's going to have a great season," Kittle said. "I mean, he's got a great supporting cast around him, but he's going to give us opportunities to make big chunk plays all the time, and I just feel like he's been making a lot of great decisions, and he's just been so consistent.
"If he's playing in the season like he is in training camp, I think he's just going to have a great year."
Kittle also acknowledged that he loves seeing linebacker Fred Warner frustrated in practice by the defense's inability to stop Purdy.
"There's nothing like seeing Fred take his helmet off after a play, disappointed," Kittle shared. "It's one of my favorite things in football."
Kittle also touched on Purdy's development and growth as the quarterback enters his fifth NFL season. When asked what stands out most about Purdy, the tight end didn't hesitate.
"Just a confidence," Kittle said. "Everything he's doing is with confidence. He has such a good understanding of the offense now. It's his offense. And the coaches are like pushing him, like, 'Hey, we want you to force these throws in training camp and OTAs, so when we get to the game, then you're comfortable throwing them.' And he's just forcing passes, and it's really fun to see because he's connecting on a ton of them."
Kittle shared one example from practice in which Purdy connected with wide receiver Mike Evans, perfectly placing the football where only Evans could get it.
"You can just tell his confidence is so high," Kittle continued. "And it's not a cocky thing. It's just he knows how good he is, he knows how good he can be in the offense, and he's just taking it day by day.
"So, it's just been really fun to see him continually go, and I'm just thoroughly enjoying watching Brock dice."
Mentioned in this article: Mike Evans, George Kittle, Brock Purdy, Fred Warner
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