Jenna Brandt, the fiancé of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, expressed her gratitude for a successful season despite the recent Super Bowl loss.
Brandt posted an Instagram photo of herself and Purdy kissing at the Super Bowl on February 11, a day that wasn’t all roses for the 49ers in a 25-22 overtime loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. Brandt wrote “what a season to be proud & thankful for” in her post.
Purdy later responded “love you girl” and “thanks for all you do babe”. The couple will get married on March 9 — only 27 days after the Big Game.
They met at Iowa State in college before Purdy became the final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft by the 49ers. Purdy’s unexpected rise to stardom came about that year amid injuries to former Niners quarterbacks Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo.
After a stellar rookie campaign, Purdy bounced back from a season-ending elbow injury and led the 49ers to the Super Bowl in the 2023 season. This year, Purdy won’t have to worry about offseason surgery and recovery to get ready for 2024.
“It’ll be nice to sort of work on my craft, get a real legit offseason in,” Purdy told reporters on February 13. “Obviously last year, the season ended, surgery, rehab, trying to get back for the season, so it was just all so fast and going a million miles an hour. So for me to be able to take a step away for a little bit and then I think just work on my mobility, obviously continuing with my arm strength and all that, will be huge for me.”
Purdy also indicated that will stick around the Bay Area to train after his wedding.
“And I don’t know if I’m going to go to Jacksonville yet to start training, but obviously I love going down there and getting with Tom Gormley and Will Hewlett. Those are the guys that really helped me perfect my craft,” Purdy said.
Brock Purdy: ‘I’m Excited to Get Better’
Purdy outlined mobility, his arm strength, and playbook knowledge as his areas for improvement this offseason.
“I think just physically, I think my arm strength, and I always say mobility, but really like my shoulder mobility, my hips just being able to move better,” Purdy said. “I feel like my rookie year I was pretty tight, and then I had surgery, so my focus was on my arm. So I feel like I could just be a little bit more elusive and stuff in how I move, and that’s something that I want to get better at.
“And then just mentally within the playbook, I think year after year getting better and more comfortable with the system and how Kyle [Shanahan] is calling things and go back on film and look at situations where I can learn from and be better in situational football. So those are all things that you can add up and hopefully I can get better at.”
“I’m excited to get better — like truly get better at my craft,” Purdy added.
Brock Purdy on Mobility: ‘We’ll See’
Purdy notably showed his mobility in the postseason amid 74 yards rushing and five first downs. He downplayed his plans to develop that area of his game as he highlighted the playmakers on his team.
“I mean, obviously I’m going to continue to work at my explosiveness and speed,” Purdy said. “I’ve always done that, and so if that becomes part of the game, so be it. But I’m a quarterback. I got playmakers around me to go make plays and do all those things. So more than anything, I want to go after the craft of being a good quarterback. So that’s first and foremost.”