Brock Purdy or Christian McCaffrey for most valuable player. Who ya got?
Well, San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan isn’t about to be baited into answering that loaded question. However, if Purdy or any other NFL quarterback comes up short when the Associated Press NFL Most Valuable Player is revealed at NFL Honors, Shanahan believes there’s no other choice but CMC.
“I mean, are you trying to get me in trouble with those two guys?” Shanahan answered Wednesday, via team transcript, when asked how he'd choose between McCaffrey and Purdy as MVP with them on the same team. “That's the only reason I wouldn’t overly comment on either one of them because I don't want them to cancel each other out.”
Purdy, simply because he’s a quarterback, has a far better chance of hauling in the MVP hardware. An MVP hasn’t been awarded to a non-QB since then-Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson won it in 2012. Peterson and running back Marshall Faulk (2000; Rams) are the only non-QBs to garner the accolade this century.
However, if it isn’t a signal-caller who’s lauded, it should be McCaffrey, according to his head coach.
“If any non-quarterback's going to get a MVP, I don't get how Christian McCaffrey can't,” Shanahan said. “I mean, he's amazing in what he has done all year. If it's going to a quarterback, then I don't have to talk about Christian. I can talk about our quarterback. If his numbers is all you see, then I think that solves it up. But, if you watch the film, then it makes it even stronger, which to me is the most important thing.”
Purdy and McCaffrey each have valid cases in a field that includes Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson, Miami Dolphins signal-caller Tua Tagovailoa and his fellow Fin, wide receiver Tyreek Hill, among others.
Purdy, who’s thrown for 3,553 yards, 25 touchdowns and just seven interceptions, leads the NFL with a 70.2 completion percentage, 116.9 rating, 74.7 QBR and an average of 9.9 yards per attempt. The latter is the in a single season all time, per NFL Research.
As for CMC, as versatile as he is dynamic, he’s leading the NFL with 1,177 rushing yards and 1,614 scrimmage yards. His 17 scrimmage TDs are second in the league, and his 278 touches are tops, as he continues on a pace for a second career 2,000-yard scrimmage season.
Shanahan won’t call it when it comes to CMC and his QB in the MVP race, but he’ll surely be calling their numbers on Sunday. The two MVP candidates have teamed up to help the Niners become the first NFL team to clinch a playoff berth this season, and on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals, Purdy and McCaffrey can clinch an NFC West title while furthering their MVP campaigns.