Niners Nation
Say it with me: Brock Purdy is not an average quarterback. He’s not perfect, but he’s not average either.
And Brock Purdy has nothing to apologize for in the San Francisco 49ers’ 17-13 win over the Seattle Seahawks. Not for throwing two interceptions into a web of coverages, not for a dumb intentional grounding play, and certainly not for his sub-100 passer rating on the day.
When his back was against the wall and nothing went well all day for him or the 49ers, Purdy marched down the field and hit a tight end who had only caught three passes for his career. Is it luck? Yes. But Russell Wilson, Eli Manning, and several others made a career of plays just like what Purdy did. He put the team on his back and won the game. Well, Nick Bosa won the game with his strip sack, but none of this would have been possible with Purdy.
Furthermore, the 49ers’ final offensive series of the game displayed Brock Purdy doing things people said he couldn’t do:
Brock Purdy is a product of his weapons and can’t win without them? He has now. And he did it against one of the better defenses in the league.
Brock Purdy can’t win when he throws two or more interceptions (0-6 record)? He has now.
Brock Purdy can’t put the team on his back and win when there’s little room for error? He has now.
Brock Purdy is just a game manager, and is a really good game manager? When Purdy was “managing” the game, he threw two picks. When he went into gunslinger mode, he got a touchdown. Say what you want about the arm strength, decision-making, whatever. The fact of the matter is, we’ve seen the pedigree of quarterbacks play games like Purdy did for over three quarters, and then rally and win. The result is talk of legends and legacies. Look at the aftermath of the 49ers’ 2018 loss to Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers — and that was a BAD 49ers team that year.
Purdy finds a tight end we’ll later learn is Jake Tonges, and the 49ers are up by four points with a minute and a half to go.
“It was a fast break,” Purdy said, recalling the play. “So you walk up and snap the ball quick. It was a straight, across-the-board read. Just felt like the coverage was tight. At that point, I needed to leave the pocket and find a guy in the endzone. As I’m going away, I’m trying to put it hopefully where Tonges can get it, or nobody can get it. I know it was a close call, but he used his length and came down with it, and here we are.”
Speaking of Tonges, he didn’t have a reception until Sunday’s win. Don’t worry, Purdy didn’t know that either.
Of course, people want to say it’s “just” luck. Yeah, no.
And the funniest thing of all is that Purdy has...
