Purdy is early surprise as NFL’s best

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy is the surprising pick as best in his position so far this season according to NFL executives, coaches and media experts.

At this early stage, Purdy’s stats are impressive. Before last weekend’s game he had a 69.6% completion rate, 1,460 passing yards, 14 passing touchdowns, 2 interceptions; 156 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown.

Baby-faced Purdy, 26, also had just five sacks on the season, and his effectiveness as a runner has made him even more difficult to defend. But Purdy’s superpower is his accuracy. He had a 5.1% completion percentage over expectation, per NFL Next Gen Stats, and he completes an NFL-high 88% of his passes to open receivers.

The 49ers look like the NFL’s best team at this stage with a 6-0 record before Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons, and it’s largely because Purdy is having the best season of his career. He has helped San Francisco overcome an NFL-high 22 players being placed on injured reserve.

Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills is a close second to Purdy. His stats: 66.7% completion rate, 1,504 passing yards, 9 passing TDs, 4 INTs; 240 rushing yards, 8 rushing TDs.

The way Allen performed late in their 37-34 OT victory over the Rams is the most memorable MVP moment of any QB performance this season.

Kansas City Chiefs running back Kenneth Walker III is third in the poll. His stats are impressive: 106 rushes, 665 rushing yards, 6 rushing TDs; 14 catches, 95 receiving yards, 2 receiving TDs.

Walker leads the NFL by far with 52 broken tackles, per NFL Next Gen Stats, breaking a tackle on a league-high 43% of his touches. But it’s not just power. Criticised for lack of speed, he has reached 15-plus mph on 23 different carries this season and has two of the four running plays in the league to hit 21-plus mph. It has helped him to a healthy 6.3 yards per carry on the season.