Shanahan expects Dobbs’ preparation to pay off in 49ers’ season finale originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
49ers coach Kyle Shanahan believes the quarterback Joshua Dobbs will shine against his former Arizona Cardinals to complete the 2024 NFL regular season.
Dobbs, of course, is San Francisco’s starter in place of Brock Purdywho is recovering from contusion of the right elbow with nerve inflammation suffered during the 49ers’ Week 17 loss to the Detroit Lions.
Shanahan expressed his confidence and expectations of Dobbs with Greg Papa on the latest edition of NBC Sports Bay Area’s “49ers Game Plan.”
“To be exactly like he’s always been when he comes in,” Shanahan told Papa of his expectations of Dobbs. “Josh prepares as well as any quarterback I’ve ever been around.
“I mean, [Week 17 vs. Detroit Lions] I showed it right there; just to get in that situation at the end of the game, I mean, no hesitation, he shoots straight away, knows exactly when to snatch the ball, goes to the right places and when something wasn’t there, he s ‘broke and got us a scrambling touchdown.
Dobbs had limited opportunities behind Purdy and the 49ers’ backup quarterback Brandon Allen.
But Dobbs looked good against Detroit at the end of ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” at Levi’s Stadium. He helped San Francisco loses 40-34 looking more polished, completing three of four passes for 35 yards with a seven-yard rushing touchdown after Purdy fell.
The “Passtronaut,” as Dobbs is known for his astronomical quests outside of football, should entertain the Faithful to end what has been a long season for San Francisco. And that’s all Shanahan or anyone can ask for at this point.
“He was great all week running the show, getting used to some of the guys and the pacing and things like that,” Shanahan told Papa. “But that’s why we brought him here.” When Josh goes into games, he gives his team a chance to win, and he did that for us on Monday when he came in, and I plan on him doing the same thing this Sunday.
Dobbs hasn’t been able to show too much for the 49ers – but he has thrived against them during the 2023 season with the same Cardinals he will face on Sunday at Arizona’s State Farm Stadium.
In Week 4 of last campaign, against a San Francisco defense that reached Super Bowl LVIII, Dobbs completed 28 of 41 passes for 265 yards and two touchdowns with 12 carries for 48 yards. This game — a 49ers win 35-16 – single-handedly helped Dobbs land a contract in San Francisco this past offseason.
“Yeah, it was [convincing]”, Shanahan talked to Dad about Dobbs’ performance against the 49ers. “We studied him that week and thought he played their offense really well, and he had only been there about two weeks at the time; so, I thought it was really impressive.
“And then he applied that to our game. We were on offense that day…but the way he was playing made me nervous [because] at any time, if we hadn’t scored, we knew they were swarming us.
Dobbs’ 2023 season has been quite impressive.
He started 12 games and appeared in 13 for two teams: the Cardinals and the Minnesota Vikings. Dobbs finished with 2,464 yards, 13 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, all reasonable numbers considering his midseason change of scenery and his prowess on the fly.
“He played at a very high level in that game and continued that throughout the year and did that for a few other teams as well,” Shanahan reiterated to Papa. “So when we got the chance to get him this summer, we were excited to get him.”
Shanahan and the 49ers brought Dobbs to the Bay to have a reliable option in case of an emergency. With Purdy away, time for backup has come.
