Surprising 49ers QB named MVP 'dark horse' for 2023
The San Francisco 49ers got unbelievably surprising performance from their quarterback a season ago. Brock Purdy exploded onto the NFL scene as a rookie that was never expected to start before the season. He shocked the world and helped them get all the way to the NFC Championship game. That being said, a national outlet […]
The San Francisco 49ers got unbelievably surprising performance from their quarterback a season ago. Brock Purdy exploded onto the NFL scene as a rookie that was never expected to start before the season. He shocked the world and helped them get all the way to the NFC Championship game.
That being said, a national outlet doesn't list Purdy as a "dark horse" candidate for the NFL MVP this year. It may be due to his current injury recovery, though. Instead, Adam Schein says that Sam Darnold is a candidate for the league's MVP award if everything goes right for he and the 49ers this year.
A list of dark-horse MVP candidates with back-to-back quarterbacks who busted on the Jets? Every day brings new surprises in this mad, mad world!
I know we're hearing a lot of good news around Brock Purdy's rehab process, and that's great. But the guy underwent elbow surgery on his throwing arm a few months ago, so until I see it, I have trouble just accepting that everything is hunky-dory and the former seventh-round selection will pick up right where he left off last January.
With Darnold in the starting lineup, I firmly believe Kyle Shanahan's 49ers can win 11-to-13 games and be bona fide Super Bowl contenders. I touched on this a couple weeks ago, and I'm not kidding. So let's ride! — Schein
This is some legit praise for Darnold and the 49ers offensive staff. Darnold has never proven that he can be a high-end starter at the professional level. Although, he has never played for QB guru Kyle Shanahan before in his career.
Darnold is the definition of a "dark horse" candidate, though. He's a long shot at +10000 odds to win the award, so it makes sense. I won't place any bets on him, but I'm sure some folks will.
Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
