Eric Williams
NFC West Writer
Haters gonna hate.
Brock Purdy has been dealing with vocal doubters of his ability since he took over as the San Francisco 49ers quarterback midway through the 2022 season.
He’s a system quarterback, they say, carried by a stacked group of playmakers and an offensive guru in head coach Kyle Shanahan. He comes up small in the clutch, they say, lacks arm strength and isn’t near the athletic unicorn like Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson.
Such comments usually don’t illicit more than a shoulder shrug from the Iowa State product, who, as the final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, was dubbed that year’s “Mr. Irrelevant.”
“For me, you’re real with yourself,” Purdy told reporters about how he stays on an even keel. “You understand where you’re at as a quarterback, how you played.
“And it doesn’t matter whether you played good or bad, you can’t take that with you. It’s a new game, new scheme, new environment — everything about it is new. It’s almost like you’ve got a new slate.”
All Purdy needs to quiet his critics is point to his numbers. Since taking over as the starter in Week 13 of last season, Purdy is 20-5, including the postseason. Over that time, he leads the league in passer rating (110.8) and completions of 20-plus yards (104), is No. 3 in passing touchdowns (48) and No. 4 in passing yards (6,547) and completion percentage (68.1%).
For their part, Purdy’s teammates are thrilled to have him under center.
“I love playing football with him,” receiver Brandon Aiyuk said. “He’s the reason why I’m sitting here today feeling like I have an opportunity this weekend to play my best football, because of a quarterback like him.”
Purdy’s efficient play has the 49ers back in the NFC Championship Game, where they will host the Detroit Lions at Levi’s Stadium on Sunday (6:30 p.m. ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app). It’s the same place he found himself a year ago, when he suffered a torn…
Source link : https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/brock-purdy-ignores-the-haters-focuses-on-leading-49ers-to-super-bowl
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Publish date : 2024-01-24 22:42:08
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