Is Brock Purdy Actually Good?

[NinerNation21]

I've seen this topic all over the place, in the NFL Gen thread, on Twitter, on TV, everywhere. 

But I want to hear from people who actually watch Purdy game in and game out.

[burlow]

If he were the best QB in the league then why did he not get drafted until the last pick of the NFL draft.  Think about when you were back in 5th grade playing flag football, remember the last kid picked?  that is Brock Purdy, get him off of my team.

[Chrissooner49er]

Yes, he is good. And I think his college experience helped make him so good. Iowa St. is not a threat to really do much in NCAA football. Purdy had soooooooo much practice at running for his life and trying to make something happen with so little time in his 4 seasons there. His decisiveness, processing skills and quick release all come from such a refiner's fire. He gets here, studies the playbook incessantly. He makes the team because he convinces Kyle that he is better than Sudfeld, despite the 2 mil sunk cost. So, when he gets the chance to step in, he is successful because of the attributes he gained in college and the work ethic he developed throughout his football years that all combine to make him the best field commander for Kyle's offense since Kyle became a head coach. 

 

[Forge]

He meets the Jimmy g baseline, I feel good about that. And he already looks better in the playoffs .  Now, I never really considered Jimmy "good", though he was capable of good moments, good games, and even good seasons. But he really vacillated between below average / average / above average. That's mostly just semantics though. 

So Purdy is good enough. Determining just how good he is likely would require a much larger sample with varying situations because it is fair to say that his situation is uniquely excellent. It's a fairly nebulous concept. Most QBs simply are their situation. Look at a guy like Matt Stafford, who was consistently bagged as overrated when he was having some ups and downs with bad Detroit teams. 

I'm not really all that concerned about it. 

[J-ALL-DAY]

Yes, Purdy is a good QB. Is he elite? I don't know about that but this isn't just a product of the scheme or a Jimmy G type of situation. His processing is just next level and you can't teach that quality. His arm is mediocre but he could make up for that with great accuracy but he lacks that at the moment so I can't say he's a great QB. Once he improves that with his otherworldly processing? Then you can have a Brees type of QB.

Edited October 4, 2023 by J-ALL-DAY

[stl4life07]

I think Purdy is good for the Niners. Most athletes need to be in the right system and thats in all sports. We dont know if Purdy is elite bc he hasnt been in a situation to show it. He hasnt need to make THE throw or play on the road in a playoff game against the GOAT when the team is crumbling around him. He hasnt need to have THE drive when he literally has only one player to go too bc the rest of his go to players are hurt and everyone knows he only has one player to go too and he still makes it work. He hasnt needed to have a perfect half on the road after struggling in the 1st half and the team is trailing in rainy conditions. I dont even think Purdy has even had an OT game where he needed to lead the team to a win. 

So all we can say now is Purdy is good for the Niners. He more than likely wouldnt be good for the Bears or Panthers right now. But he is a good starting QB for what the Niners ask of him in the offense. Now when he get it situations where he has a chance to show he can be elite if he shows he can pass those difficult tests more times than not then you can start to say he could be elite and not just a good QB for the Niners. 

I think the more things change the more things stay the same. Purdy is just Jimmy G but the conversation has slightly changed. With Jimmy G it was "yeah but Jimmy G wins". Now with Purdy it is "He is a better athlete than Jimmy G and he wins". I felt like if Lance wouldve worked out for the Niners we wouldnt have this conversation. It would be yes Lance is up their with Allen, Herbert, Burrow (when healthy), etc... Now its just basically the same talk. The Niners went from Jimmy G to a better version of Jimmy G but at least we saw Jimmy G in some of those situations I just mentioned where he had to lead the team from behind and had game winning drives on the road when the team had to have them. 

[stl4life07]

3 hours ago, burlow said:

If he were the best QB in the league then why did he not get drafted until the last pick of the NFL draft.  Think about when you were back in 5th grade playing flag football, remember the last kid picked?  that is Brock Purdy, get him off of my team.

The draft process is a crapshoot. Purdy being the last pick of the draft right now means nothing. Same as Jones being a top 10 pick means nothing. He got paid but many knew it was a mistake. If the Niners gave Purdy the Jones contract how many would push back that decision? Not many bc Purdy hasnt shown anything to cringe about where as Jones have plenty on tape to cringe about. What Ive been consistent with Purdy is I want to see him in situations we havent seen him in and how he will look. Now he hasnt been in those situations bc of how good the Niners as a team has been but eventually he will be bc thats sports. The Niners will be down by double digit points in the 4th quarter and will need Purdy to lead them to a win. There will be a game where Purdy will need to lead the team down the field for a td with less than 2 minutes and 1 timeout. Will he be able to do that? Like those are the boxes he will have to check even if its once or twice bc of how great the Niners are. 

 

[jonnguy2015]

3 hours ago, stl4life07 said:

I think Purdy is good for the Niners. Most athletes need to be in the right system and thats in all sports. We dont know if Purdy is elite bc he hasnt been in a situation to show it. He hasnt need to make THE throw or play on the road in a playoff game against the GOAT when the team is crumbling around him. He hasnt need to have THE drive when he literally has only one player to go too bc the rest of his go to players are hurt and everyone knows he only has one player to go too and he still makes it work. He hasnt needed to have a perfect half on the road after struggling in the 1st half and the team is trailing in rainy conditions. I dont even think Purdy has even had an OT game where he needed to lead the team to a win. 

It's not quite the same thing but Purdy had to come back from a 10 point deficit against the Raiders last year, leading three scoring drives in the 4th quarter and what would have been a 53 yard game winning drive in just a minute if not for Gould missing the FG. This was without Deebo and Kittle having a quiet receiving day as well

Edited October 4, 2023 by jonnguy2015

[straighthate]

Seeing the field and anticipating where to go with the ball is the most important piece of being a QB in the nfl. More important than arm strength, pinpoint accuracy, or mobility. It’s the closest thing to defining the it factor for a QB in my opinion. Purdy may be on his way to being the top guy in the league with that quality, but with far less physical ability than the elite guys. But for each one of those elite athletes, there’s a Jamarcus Russell who can throw 70 yards from his knees, a Colin Kaepernick who can run for 200 and can hurt his WR’s hands with his velocity, or Zach Wilson who wraps all the physical traits in one guy and looks like a world beater until a defense actually steps on the field. 
 

I wanted Mac Jones over Fields and Lance because I thought I saw that vision in the pocket and processing. And I thought Fields and Lance were athletes but not quarterbacks. It looks like I may have been wrong on Jones, but Purdy is a better version of what I thought he was. So I guess to answer this question, I don’t think it’ll be answered soon for a some people and that’s simply because where he was drafted and he doesn’t have highlight runs or a cannon. Same people took five years to admit Montana and Brady weren’t just system QBs. But I think by the end of the year he’s gonna be pretty much accepted as a top 10 QB. Maybe reluctantly by many, but he’ll have answered enough questions and put the team on his back enough times that it’ll be tough to argue he’s not an elite QB, even if he’s not an elite physical talent. 

[Geek]

We got rid of Jimmy G, we got rid of Trey Lance, and our QB just went 20/21 for 283 yards and somehow we still have a QB controversy.

[TecmoSuperJoe]

If you don't like questions about a QB's legitimacy while playing well on a Super Bowl-bound squad, then you don't like 49ers football.

Edited October 5, 2023 by TecmoSuperJoe

[NcFinest9erFan]

No, he's terrible. Can't do anything right and gets carried by the YAC crew.

Sidenote: this is all a joke but I'll keep throwing shade at Purdy because anytime I get excited about a QB on our team, it does not end well.....

[John232]

This is a Steve Ruiz thread 

[Forge]

 

[J-ALL-DAY]

There are a lot of comparisons always of Jimmy and Purdy, and there's good reason for that. Jimmy was efficient and always had good advanced stats and a good QB rating every single season. But I think one big difference between the two is that Purdy just flat out produces more points and it is not a coincidence. Jimmy can move the crap out of the ball and was always good/solid on 3rd downs, but Purdy is getting it to the end zone. We averaged over 30 PPG in his starts last season and have eclipsed that amount in all four games this season. In 2021, we were 7th in YPG while being 13th in PPG. Last season, as well as Jimmy was playing statistically, the team was averaging 23.9 PPG while the team was average 32.7 PPG in Brock's 8 full games played (inc Miami and not including Philly).

The Cowboys have been the only team to hold a Purdy led offense to under 20 points. Really curious to see how he performs against this defense the second time around.