The San Francisco 49ers have had a strong record with Brock Purdy as their starting quarterback, but Green Bay Packers defensive lineman Devonte Wyatt believes they may have uncovered a key strategy to potentially defeat them in the upcoming divisional-round matchup: forcing Purdy to make turnovers.
In a recent quote, Wyatt spoke out about the main key to stopping Purdy and the 49ers’ offense.
“When D-linemen just get pressure into him, he’s always throwing off or it’s behind them or it’s overthrown or short. When you get pressure on him, it’s a guarantee we’ll get a turnover.”
Wyatt’s theory appears to have merit, as statistics from this season reveal that when under pressure, Purdy had the third-highest number of passes batted down (five).
Additionally, he was tied for the sixth-most interceptions (six) and had the sixth-highest turnover-worthy play percentage (5.4%), according to Pro Football Focus.
In the four games that Purdy’s team lost this season, he threw nine interceptions and fumbled twice, often facing pressure on 44% of his dropbacks. To provide context, in the 12 games that his team won, Purdy was pressured only 36% of the time, as per PFF.
To secure an upset victory in Santa Clara, the Packers will likely need to rely on their formidable defensive front, which ranks among the strongest in the NFC. During the regular season, the Packers were 17th in sacks with 45 and managed to generate an impressive 20.8 pressures, 13.8 hurries, and 3.7 quarterback hits per game.
Want the latest NFL and NCAA Football analysis, breaking news, and insider information? Click here. Interested in reading storylines and analysis about the NBA? Check out our partner NBA Analysis Network.
