Is Purdy the answer for the Niners?

An esoteric stat but an impressive one, nonetheless.

Forty-Niners fans had given up on the season when Purdy was suddenly inserted into the lineup after Jimmy Garoppolo suffered a foot injury against the Miami Dolphins Dec. 4. And Purdy hasn’t blinked. In fact, he may be the quarterback head coach Kyle Shanahan has been looking for since he took over the franchise. I don’t think Shanahan has coveted a running quarterback like Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson or Philadelphia’s Jalen Hurts. Instead, I think the 49ers head coach has looked for a quarterback who was elusive enough to extend plays, a guy who makes something out of nothing with his legs.

Essentially, the antithesis of Garoppolo.

While there are similarities between Purdy and Garoppolo — most notable being their accuracy — what sets them apart is Purdy’s willingness to push passes downfield. I can’t imagine Brandon Aiyuk and George Kittle are any more open with Purdy under center than Garoppolo. But Purdy has the … gumption, shall we say … to take his shots despite not having the strongest arm. With Purdy in the lineup, suddenly Kittle, especially, has become a feared offensive threat again, with four touchdowns in his last two games.

Essentially, Purdy is willing to take chances. Garoppolo is not. And while protecting the football is job No.1 in the NFL, a team also needs a guy who is not afraid to make a mistake. In fact, NFL teams need a quarterback who has a “glass half full” mentality: not only is he not worried about making mistakes, he is more concerned about making a play.

And Purdy, so far, has shown to be what the 49ers have been lacking under center: a playmaker. The guy is simply a playmaker.

***

Well, I’ll admit it: I didn’t see coming the Warriors’ 123-109 rout of the Memphis Grizzlies on Christmas Day, which only adds to the head scratching over the 2022-23 Golden State campaign.

With the win, the Warriors improved to 13-2 at home. But put this game in Memphis, the Grizzlies probably win going away, considering Golden State is just 3-16 on the road.

Coming off a 1-5 road trip and facing one of the toughest teams in the NBA without Steph Curry and Andrew Wiggins, Sunday did not seem like a good matchup.

And despite drawing six technical fouls, Golden State still managed to lead almost wire-to-wire. They had six — six! — players score in double figures. In addition to the usual suspects — Jordan Poole scoring 32 and Klay Thompson going for 24 — there was the likes of Dante DiVincenzo scoring 19 and bench players Ty Jerome (14 points), Anthony Lamb (11) and Moses Moody (10) also contributing.

Draymond Green had only 3 points, but he pulled down 13 rebounds and dished out 13 assists.

All in all, it was one of the more complete team victories the Warriors have had all season.

So why can’t that kind of performance translate on the road? Granted, most NBA teams have issues on the road. The Grizzlies and Phoenix Suns, two of the top three teams in the Western Conference, both have losing records, but not by much — Memphis is 7-9 on the road, the Suns are 7-10. So it’s not like the Warriors need to dominate in opposing arenas, but they certainly need to start stringing together some wins on the road if they want to avoid the NBA postseason play-in tournament.

Nathan Mollat can be reached by email: nathan@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: 344-5200 ext. 117. To report scores or tips, email sports@smdailyjournal.com.