San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, the-one time “Mr. Irrelevant,” is on the verge of a new moniker: Super Bowl champion.
He initially received the dismissive nickname for being the very last pick (262) in the 2022 National Football League draft after playing college ball at Iowa State.
For the player that wears the “lucky” number 13 on his jersey, things have significantly and perhaps improbably changed since then, with Purdy’s rise to prominence from 49ers third stringer to starter.
In 2023, Purdy, who has repeatedly given God credit for his success, made the Pro Bowl and led the NFL in passer rating in 2023.
In the NFC Championship game on Sunday, he led 49ers to a 34-31 comeback victory over the Detroit Lions, throwing for 267 yards and one touchdown, along with 48 rushing yards, in a match-up watched by nearly 60 million viewers — the best ratings for an NFC Championship since 2012.
“San Francisco mounted the fourth comeback ever from 17 points down or more in a conference title game thanks to some big plays by Purdy and bad mistakes from the Lions,” ESPN reported.
Purdy magic in full effect 🪄
📺: #DETvsSF on FOX
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/Gif3vibPha— NFL (@NFL) January 29, 2024
“After being questioned about whether he could lead a comeback, Purdy has now done it twice in as many weeks. He engineered a game-winning drive in the fourth quarter to beat Green Bay last week and then had an even bigger comeback against the Lions,” ESPN added.
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Despite these accomplishments, some critics still underestimate Purdy by dismissing him as a game manager or a system QB, even as analytics are an enormous component of all professional sports across the board.
Reacting to Purdy’s performance against Detroit, particularly in the second half, veteran NFL quarterback Matt Ryan told CBS Sports, “That wasn’t managing the game. It wasn’t hitting open throws. It was making plays.”
Ryan went on to tell CBS, “Ultimately, that’s what you want — you want a quarterback who can find ways to make plays at the end of games to put you in a position to win, and I think it went from managing a game to going out and winning a game on the second biggest stage we have in football. It’s not the Super Bowl, but it gives you the opportunity to get there. I don’t think he has to do anything more to answer … about being a game manager or any of this stuff.”
According to a pre-draft NFL scouting report that The Athletic gained access to, Purdy — who was a four-year starter for the Iowa State Cyclones — was rated very experienced and again, a good game manager, but with weaknesses such as ““sawed off … not a very good athlete … limited arm, both in strength and throw repertoire.”
Purdy takes off for 21 yards!
📺: #DETvsSF on FOX
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/CL06CMKemX— NFL (@NFL) January 29, 2024
Confounding the so-called experts at least from early on, Purdy and the 49ers are headed to Las Vegas where they will meet his counterpart Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs (plus Taylor Swift) for Super Bowl LVIII on Feb. 11 at Allegiant Stadium.
On game day, Purdy will become the lowest-drafted QB to ever start a Super Bowl.
The 49ers were knocking on the Super Bowl door last year but lost the NFC Championship game in a blowout to the Philadelphia Eagles — a game in which Purdy suffered a serious, first-quarter injury.
During a post-game press conference after the win over the Lions, Purdy, 24, talked about his personal journey in the context of faith, Sports Spectrum reported.
“Honestly, I think it’s just a testament to God and where He’s taken me in life. I’ve never been the biggest, the fastest, the strongest, or any of that. I feel like I’ve always had to sort of fight for what I get and work for what I get. But God’s always given me an opportunity …”
He added, “So when I’m down 17 at half, honestly, I’m just thinking, ‘All right God, You’ve taken me here, and win or lose, I’m going to glorify You.’”
As of now, the 49ers are a very narrow favorite over the defending champion Chiefs, according to the oddsmakers who set the line in sports betting.
