San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy is considered the frontrunner for the NFL MVP award by many, but there are some who feel that he is not even the most valuable member of his own team. Those people would cite running back Christian McCaffrey as the 49ers’ driving force.
And you know what? So does Purdy.
Earlier in the week, McCaffrey stated that he felt Purdy should be the league MVP this season, but afterward, Purdy gave the halfback his stamp of approval.
“He does it all,” Purdy told reporters, via Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. “I think he’s the reason why our pass game and our play-action pass and all that kind of stuff opened up because he sort of sets the standard with the run game and then when we do pass the ball, he’s there in our play. He catches the ball, he makes guys miss, he can go up against safeties and linebackers and make them miss and stuff in the pass game. And then he scores touchdowns. His stats are crazy. So, he’s definitely a valued player and I think the most valued player.”
Through the first 14 games of the season, McCaffrey is leading the NFL with 1,292 rushing yards to go along with 13 rushing touchdowns while averaging a robust 5.3 yards per carry. In addition, he has caught 57 passes for 509 yards and seven scores.
San Francisco landed McCaffrey in a deadline trade with the Carolina Panthers midway through last season, and he has unquestionably taken the club’s offense to another level.
McCaffrey, who played his collegiate football at Stanford, was originally selected by the Panthers with the eighth overall pick of the 2017 NFL Draft.
He spent the first five-and-a-half years of his career in Carolina, with his best campaign coming in 2019 when he racked up 1,387 yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground, logging 4.8 yards per attempt. He also hauled in 116 receptions for 1,005 yards and four scores.
Because the MVP is typically a quarterback’s award, Brock Purdy will probably garner more attention in voting than Christian McCaffrey, but the friendly, unselfish dynamic between the two is something we should all appreciate.
The Niners are 11-3 and will battle the Baltimore Ravens on Christmas Day.
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