SANTA CLARA — Offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak shared there are a few things on 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy’s to-do list for the 2026 NFL season.
Through nine starts in 2025, Purdy completed 197 of his 284 attempts for 2,167 yards, 20 touchdowns and a 69.4 completion rate that tied his career high in 2023. Kubiak’s goals for Purdy are to improve on those metrics even more.
“I wouldn’t say it’s one thing,” Kubiak said on Thursday at the start of 49ers rookie minicamp. “You look at plays where, ‘OK, Brock’s a really athletic guy, he can make plays with his feet.’ But are you missing an opportunity to make a better play down the field maybe because you decided to run, or you moved a certain way and you missed a guy down the field?”
Purdy’s 2025 performance was hampered by a Week 1 toe injury that kept him off the field for eight games, when Mac Jones took his place under center. The road back to the field was not smooth for Purdy, whose toe injury lingered throughout the season.
“There were some weird setbacks in his season that I think had to do with his injury,” Kubiak said. “He came out, had an awesome camp, had an awesome first week, then he has the injury, then he comes back from the injury, and you could tell it took him a while to kind of get back to feeling 100 percent.”
Even though Purdy was effective in extending plays last season, Kubiak believes there is more for his quarterback to achieve on the field. The 49ers’ offense lacked explosive plays for much of the campaign, though there were productive plays that presented such opportunities.
“He’s always got to strive to be better in the pocket,” Kubiak said. “Whether that’s your footwork, your mechanics in the pocket or remaining a passer in situations where you can make a play down the field. It’s just working on pocket movement, working on ways you can move in the pocket to find throwing lanes and being more consistent in that area.”
During the season, players and coaches have to move on quickly from games and into preparation for their next opponent. The offseason allows them to take a deeper dive into their overall play and thoroughly work on elements that they did not have time to midseason.
“Things we’re always striving for with him is understanding defense better, accuracy, all those things,” Kubiak said. “So, I think Brock is really watching these cut-ups. He’s really striving to be a better, stronger player in the pocket. And we’re going to work on those things this offseason.”
Purdy, now fully recovered from his “toe debacle,” is set to prepare for the season with a new set of receivers, including free-agent acquisition Mike Evans, which also could help the signal-caller’s productivity.