No longer irrevelant; Who is 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy?
SANTA CLARA -- It's a nickname bestowed by reporters at the end of the long, mind-numbing hours covering the NFL Draft. The 262nd selection -- the last pick -- has been christened 'Mr. Irrelevant.'
Last year, that moniker was draped over Iowa State quarterback Brock Purdy when the 49ers selected him 262nd in the 2022 draft.
But In the blink of an eye Sunday, Purdy became very relevant when starter Jimmy Garoppolo went down with a broken foot and was lost for the season.
Purdy came in, completing 25-for-37 pass attempts for 210 yards with two TDs and one interception -- all the time dodging a furious Miami pass rush.
The 49ers won the game -- 33-17 -- and his teammates chanted Purdy's name during the post-game lockerroom celebration.
Definitely, no longer irrelevant, but Purdy been here before. As a freshman at Iowa State, he was third string to Kyle Kempt and Zeb Noland. He became the starter after Kempt was injured and Noland was ineffective and then started every game that followed.
In the post-game limelight, Purdy displayed the strong confidence flowing deep under his calm demeanor.
"It wasn't like I was out there like shaking like, 'Oh, shoot, what do I do? What's my read?' None of that," he said. "Every single week I act like I'm the starter. I prepare like I'm the starter. My name was called. (QB) Coach (Brian) Griese said 'let's roll' and I just went out there thinking what I needed to do on the first play."
The Dolphins greeted Purdy with a variety of stunts and blitzes. He stood tall, handled the pressure and took the hits.
"Once I got hit on a rollout, it felt good," the rookie said. "All right, I got some contact, now I can roll and settle down."
Purdy has also been preparing for his fill-in -- now starting -- role by spending hours after practice each day with the 49ers QB trust of Griese and Gary Kubiak.
"After every practice, I get together with Griese and Kubiak and look at every single play that was run at practice," he said. "And mentally walk through it."
When he was in college, the Iowa State coaching staff said no one would harder on Purdy than Brock himself. The rookie labels himself a perfectionist.
"I'm very thankful I got drafted, but I've always had confidence and belief in myself that I could play at this level," he said. "It's football. I played 4 years. I was a starter in college. In terms of 11-on-11 and speed and stuff, I've had that kind of experience."
"I expect a lot out of myself. You can say it's my first time going in a meaningful time in the game and to try to win and everything, but I'm a perfectionist in a sense. You are not going to be perfect and I have to know that. Enjoy the good parts and learn from the tough times."
