Everyone Was Wrong About Brock Purdy Except Tom Brady

Oh, we got a shot today, Mr. Irrelevant. And I'm sitting on the sideline and I'm like, how is Mr. Irrelevant carving us up? And is our defense that bad? And it turns out that Brock is just that good. Every team passed on Brock Purdy. Tom Brady knew better. December 11th, 2022, Levi's Stadium. Brady stands on the Tampa Bay sideline watching a rookie in number 13 take his defense apart. That rookie was the last player picked in the entire draft. Pick 262 of 262. So how did the whole league miss him? And what did Tom Brady see in one afternoon that they didn't? There's a reason Brady recognized it so fast. It involves the 49ers, a decision they made 22 years before Purdy's draft, and a grudge Brady still hasn't let go. And this October, a TV analyst who once thought Purdy was just a guy looked straight into a camera and apologized. We'll get to him. But first, go back to the day he was born. The day Brock Purdy is born, in Queen Creek, Arizona, his father is watching Dan Marino on TV. Sean Purdy grew up in Florida, a Dolphins fan. So years later, when Brock wears Marino's number 13 and finally meets him, he has one line ready. My dad always said I got to see you play the day I was born. Sean knows how a dream can slip away. The Pirates drafted him as a pitcher. He spent eight seasons in the minor leagues. He never reached the majors. At Perry High, he throws 107 touchdown passes and runs for 20 more. That's 127 touchdowns. Arizona State never recruits him. The production was never the question. The tape measure was. Then comes Alabama. An official visit. His host is a freshman quarterback named Mac Jones. We got to hang out, eat dinner, and then go back and play video games at my apartment. Mac Jones. Remember that name. Alabama's verdict comes back through an assistant, and Brock's high school coach, Preston Jones, repeats it years later. Not tall. Arm strength, quote, is whatever. Accuracy? Average. Arm strength is whatever. That is a real scouting report. Brock's answer to his coach is short. He didn't really know me, coach. His father puts it simply. You know, Brock just always has to prove himself. So Brock picks Iowa State. And what happens when a kid with an average arm gets his first real shot? Iowa State, training camp, 2018. Tight end Charlie Kolar watches the new freshman keep the ball on a speed option and run it in for a touchdown. Kolar's first words, with the swearing left out, Who is this guy? That's a teammate, before anyone outside the building knows his name. Then comes the real test. Saturday, October 6th, 2018. Iowa State at number 25 Oklahoma State, in Stillwater. A freshman, on the road, against a ranked team. Think about that. He piles up 402 yards by himself, five touchdowns. Iowa State wins a shootout, 48-42. On the sideline, his quarterback's coach worries about a celebration. Head coach Matt Campbell settles it over the headset. He can do whatever he wants. Let him be. Afterward, the verdict is simple. The moment is not too big for him. Campbell, years later. Every single game that Brock played, he either won the game or gave us every opportunity to win the game because of his performance. By the time Purdy leaves, he holds 32 school records. His teams win so many October games that it earns a name, Brocktober. Another big night comes at the Fiesta Bowl in his home state. Alabama said average. 32 records say otherwise. College was settled. The NFL was a different question. So what was San Francisco's plan at quarterback? And was there any room in it for him? Now look at San Francisco, March 26, 2021. Purdy still has a senior season left at Iowa State. The 49ers make a move that tells you how they see their future. They trade up to the third pick in the draft. The price? Three first-round picks plus a third-rounder. One of them is their 2022 first-rounder. All for one quarterback, Trey Lance. Jimmy Garoppolo stays as the starter. Lance is the future. At the press conference, the plan comes out in one line. We're excited to have a hell of a quarterback right behind him. You can say a lot about that price. Cheap isn't one of them. Three first-round picks on one player. That isn't a backup plan. That is the plan. Which meant, a year later, San Francisco didn't even have a first-round pick. Remember that. So if you've spent that much on one quarterback, who in that building is out looking for another one? Saturday, April 30th, the last day of the draft. Brock Purdy is at home in Arizona with his family, and he's already told himself the truth about this weekend. I knew I wasn't gonna go first, second or even really third round, hopefully you know fourth round at best. Round one, one quarterback goes, Kenny Pickett at pick 20. Then Desmond Ritter, Malik Willis Matt Corral, Bailey Zappe, Sam Howell, Chris Oladokun, Skylar Thompson, eight quarterbacks Every one of them hears his name before Brock does and the 49ers remember have no first round pick Their first selection of the whole draft is No. 61, a pass rusher, a running back, a receiver, linemen, cornerbacks. Eight picks and not one of them is him. Eight chances to say his name. Eight times they said somebody else's. Years later, Kyle Shanahan explains, he was sure Brock was worthy of the fourth round. And still, in his words, there was no way we could take him for our team. The 49ers liked him and still let him wait. Then, in round seven, the draft room splits. The coaches want linebackers and running backs. Jed York asks one question. Who's the best player out there? Shanahan's answer is Purdy, and he doesn't want to lose him. Let's not risk it. This guy's too good. Earlier that day, before the seventh round, the 49ers had called him. By Brock's own telling, the message was simple. They've got one more pick. I saw it was the last pick, and I was like, oh man, I'm about to be Mr. Irrelevant. Then the phone rings again. John Lynch. I'm sorry it took till the end. We find you very relevant, but you are going to be Mr. Irrelevant. At home in Arizona, his family erupts. And so when they called, I was like, man, I got an opportunity now. Like, let's roll. And obviously my family was like jumping on me and stuff and like celebrating. In Las Vegas, they read out his name. With the 262nd pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, the San Francisco 49ers select Brock Purdy, a quarterback from Iowa State and pick 262 buys a roster spot and a job title third string behind a veteran starter behind the quarterback the team paid three first round picks for for Brock to play two quarterbacks have to go down what are the odds remember he's third string but in training camp Kyle Shanahan pulls Jed York aside after practice York remembers the moment like all right what's up and he's like, ah, I think our third string quarterbacks are best quarterbacks. Then, the plan breaks. Early in the season, Trey Lance breaks his ankle against Seattle, and Jimmy Garoppolo takes over. Then, December 4th, Garoppolo breaks his foot against Miami. In jogs the rookie. Mr. Irrelevant to many, he becomes extremely relevant now. The Dolphins, his father's team. The veterans notice fast. Fullback Kyle Juszczyk is asked if the rookie really tells veterans to shut up in the huddle. It's happened a few times Yeah these are true stories And tackle Trent Williams a few days later You would think he's like Peyton Manning or something Sunday, December 11th His first start And guess who's standing across the field Tom Brady with seven Super Bowl rings Seven months earlier Brock was waiting for anyone to call his name He leans on the same thing he always has It's like our Our secret weapon really in football though Because I feel like if I didn't have the Holy Spirit and was able to pray and talk to God, my head and my mindset would be all over the place. The 49ers win, 35-7. Purdy throws for 185 yards and two touchdowns. Brady throws two interceptions. He did not do that on purpose. Brock Purdy is the first quarterback ever to beat a Brady-led team in his first start. Remember Brady on that sideline, wondering if his defense was really that bad. This is that afternoon. It wasn't the defense. then the crowd starts chanting his name the broadcast finds his parents mom and dad are having a moment right now this is this is pretty special to watch after the game Brady talks about him he played really well you know he threw a lot of good balls hung in there in the blitz then he finds Purdy himself good playing my man you played great keep it up keep going he wins five straight starts he He wins two playoff games, but in the NFC title game in Philadelphia, his right elbow gives out. A torn ligament. The 49ers lose. Brady found out in one afternoon. So how long did it take everyone else? After elbow surgery, the 49ers signed Sam Darnold as insurance. Then, in August, they trade Trey Lance to Dallas for a fourth-round pick. Three first-rounders became a fourth-rounder. The job is Brock's. season, he leads the NFL in passer rating, 113.0. And his pay? $934,253 a year. That's 85th among quarterbacks. Best passer rating in football, 85th in pay. Somewhere, a front office accountant is smiling. Then comes the label, system quarterback, game manager. On his show in December, Cam Newton says, they're not winning because of him. He's not turning the ball over. He's managing the game. These are game managers. They're not difference makers. Now listen to it get louder. No, he's not an elite quarterback. He's a product of the system. The single hardest thing I had to do this year was act like Brock Purdy deserved to be in the conversations. But he's still the 10th best player on his team. His own receiver had seen enough. In the NFC title game, Detroit leads by 17 at halftime. San Francisco wins anyway. And then the Super Bowl. Las Vegas, February 11th, 2024. 14 months after he beat Brady in his first start, Brock Purdy is starting one. It goes to overtime. Kansas City wins, 25-22. He came within three points of a title. And still, the label sticks. Now, remember Brady's grudge? The 2000 draft. Brady grows up in San Mateo, California, a 49ers fan. San Francisco wants a mobile, athletic quarterback, and Brady runs a disappointing 40 at the Combine. In the third round, at pick 65, the 49ers take Giovanni Carmazzi out of Hofstra. Brady goes in the sixth round, to the Patriots. That's 134 picks later. Carmazzi never plays a regular season game for San Francisco. That isn't on him. He didn't pick himself. Years later, on Storytime with Tom Brady. Every time I played the Niners, I just wanted to make sure that the coaches who were out there at the time that you chose a goat farmer over me, and I never forgot that. Same team, same kind of quarterback, 22 years apart. One got away, the other almost did. That's why Brady knew better. So now the 49ers face one more decision about a late pick. What is he worth? Then 2024 hits hard. The 49ers go 6-11 with injuries all around him. That spring, the 49ers pay him, five years. $265 million. About $53 million a year, more than 50 times his 2023 pay. And a full no-trade clause. The team that passed on him eight times can't trade him without his say. After a 6-11 season, that's quite a bet. Before the deal, Joe Montana, who knows a thing or two about quarterbacking in San Francisco, had already given his advice. You gotta pay him. I mean, I can show you four or five guys in the league making tons of money that haven't produced anywhere near what he's been able to do." And pro football talk, while the talks went on, read Purdy the same way. Not a guy squeezing out every last penny. "...and I'm sure he's not trying to hold their feet over the fire for every last penny, at least it seems that way." As for the old label? He laughs it off. The whole system quarterback thing, early in my career, it was just funny hearing that. But the 2025 season starts with another setback. He gets hurt in the opener, and the man filling in is Mac Jones, the same Mac Jones who hosted him at Alabama. Purdy comes back, and the 49ers win at Philadelphia 23-19 over the defending champions, same city where his elbow gave out. The next round, Seattle blows them out. By then, the question wasn't whether Purdy was good. So who would be the first to finally say it? Then comes this fall. Brock Purdy's season is off to a flying start. The 49ers are winning, the touchdowns are piling up, and the interceptions aren't. And his name is right in the middle of the MVP conversation. Clearly the MVP. Top five QB I trust right now. Maybe top three. Reaching Mahomes. The last pick of the entire draft. Now the TV voices. And that analyst who promised to look into the camera, here he is. Listen, I'm going to look in the camera. I'm going to apologize to Brock Purdy. I thought you were just a guy, bro. Biggest one has to be Brock Purdy. You know, Brock's playing really, really good. Nobody's questioning if Brock Purdy's a great quarterback. We're starting to witness Brock's prime. He's so automatic at running the offense, knowing where to get. That's a lot of people finally saying it. Not everyone, though. On Cam Newton's show in early October. He is managing the game at an all-time high. asked if he owes Brock an apology. He's making an apology about what you said about Brock Purdy, Cam Newton. No! You have to respect the consistency. And the man who saw it up close in Purdy's very first start, Tom Brady. I think Brock's done a great job with the opportunity. You know, he got it, and he's taken advantage of it. He was a late-round pick. I know he's got a chip on his shoulder. And he wants to go out there and prove every day that he's the right fit for that team. And the same day, Total Command, just an awesome player throwing with anticipation. His team believes in him. Eight quarterbacks went ahead of him. His own team passed on him eight times. Tom Brady needed one afternoon. The MVP race runs every Sunday from here, and for once, nobody is passing on him. So be honest in the comments. When did you finally buy in? The win over Brady, the Super Bowl run, or this fall? The last word goes to Brock. And all I ever needed was an opportunity. So I never, you know, looked at it and got mad about, oh, these teams passed up on me. For me, I was just like, man, I just need a shot. If this one hit, subscribe to First Sports. See you in the next one.