Every NFL team had multiple chances to draft Brock Purdy in 2022, and all 32 passed on him again and again.
San Francisco finally took the Iowa State quarterback with the 262nd and final selection in the seventh round, giving him the familiar “Mr. Irrelevant” label. That pick has aged far differently than the nickname suggests, with Purdy now standing as one of the 49ers’ most important players as their starting quarterback.
During an appearance on former NFL coach Jason Garrett’s “Coach 2 Coach Podcast,” Purdy was asked which qualities matter most at quarterback. “I think someone who knows who they are… You’re gonna face so much playing the position of quarterback, good and bad. And a guy who knows who they are, who’s a competitor… I feel like those are the guys that have lasted long,” Purdy said.
Garrett also asked Purdy what he believes NFL evaluators overlooked before the draft. Purdy pointed to the typical measurables and highlight traits that often shape quarterback evaluations. “I don’t know if it was the height. ‘If he’s short, and can he run really fast?’ Or Does he have an extremely strong arm? What’s the trait? I don’t know if my college tape necessarily showed all those flashy things that some of these high draft picks show.”
“But something that they missed was probably the experience that I had.
“The situational football, the way that I process the game, the way that I lead the locker room. If you asked my teammates at Iowa State, who I was, and as a leader of men, maybe that’s something that was overlooked. But I really do believe those are the things that translated into the NFL. And once I got my opportunity, then I feel like I have those traits,” he added.
Purdy has proven that he has those traits in spades. And San Francisco will need his leadership and experience if they’re to reach their goal of winning a Super Bowl this season.