Over 78% of fans said yes to this week’s survey question
What a difference a week makes in 49ers land. Following a gut-wrenching loss to the Los Angeles Rams, many 49ers fans lost confidence in the team’s direction. Our weekly confidence poll dropped from 97 percent following their Week 1 victory over the Jets to 59 percent after losing to Sam Darnold and the Minnesota Vikings. That number plummeted to 36 percent after the Rams loss.
On FanDuel Sportsbook, Purdy is sixth in MVP voting at 14/1 odds.
A lopsided victory over the Patriots raised that number to 88 percent! The NFL is a week-to-week league. Apparently, 49ers fans went from “it’s so over” to “we’re so back” in just one week. Sunday’s victory was not only a confidence builder for the 49ers headed into two consecutive NFC West matchups with Arizona and Seattle but a confidence builder for the defensive line that will move on without Javon Hargrave for the rest of the year.
The 49ers’ offense is as potent as ever, with Brock Purdy playing the best football of his career, and I contend the 49ers’ best offensive games are in front of them with the return of George Kittle and Deebo Samuel while Brandon Aiyuk is on the brink of a breakout game. That breakout game is Sunday against the Cardinals’ porous defense.
Speaking of Purdy, 78 percent of 49ers fans believe the third-year signal caller will finish top three in MVP voting. Aside from the surprise resurgence of Sam Darnold, it’s hard to argue any quarterback is playing better football than Purdy. Pick a metric or statistic and Purdy’s name is likely at the top of it.
Yes, divisional games get tricky. Arizona has proven to hang around in games they have no business contending in. Think back to last year when Josh Dobbs and the Cardinals hung around for a bit before the 49ers put the game away in Week 4. Kyler Murray is fully healthy and has Marvin Harrison, Jr at his disposal.
Even without Christian McCaffrey, Jordan Mason has more than filled in for the Offensive Player of the Year position, and this offense has more than enough firepower to stand toe-to-toe with any offense. This week’s question is whether the secondary will step up to the plate like the defensive line did.
This is a critical stretch for the 49ers to rip off two divisional wins before their Super Bowl rematch with the Kansas City Chiefs. A matchup with the Dallas Cowboys is right before the bye week, which coincides with the trade deadline and possible reinforcements of Jon Feliciano, Dre Greenlaw, and McCaffrey.
49ers fans are confident again. There is no reason to blame them. Now is the time for the team to turn it up and gain momentum before their bye week.