San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy had a rookie season that was straight out of a Disney movie pitch. Mr. Irrelevant in the 2022 NFL Draft, he started the season as the third quarterback on the depth chart behind Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo.
When both of them suffered injuries, Purdy was thrust into the lineup. Many people thought the 49ers would struggle on their third quarterback of the season, but they thrived. Purdy won the first six starts that he made, as his streak ended in the NFC Championship Game after he suffered an elbow injury against the Philadelphia Eagles.
It was a stretch that defied logic for many people. Purdy was doubted every step of the way, yet still managed to put the team in a position to win and produced some solid numbers. However, now preparing for Year 2 as the starter when he is healthy, doubters still remain.
One of the people who believes that Purdy still has a lot to prove is former NFL cornerback, Will Blackmon. Blackmon played for four teams during his 10-year NFL career, including winning a Super Bowl with the New York Giants to cap off the 2011 season.
He made an appearance on The Herd with Colin Cowherd on FS1 and had some interesting things to say about Purdy. Blackmon would like to see how he responds to teams now having film and being able to prepare for him.
“We need to see it again. That’s how it always is. When somebody does something well, we need to see it again. Give us a full 18 [games]. Let him actually see some legit adversity, now that we have a full year of film on this guy, let’s see him do it again.” (H/T MSN)
That is a fair take from Blackmon, who isn’t diminishing the work that Purdy has done to this point. He is just questioning whether or not Purdy can sustain this success long-term, which is something plenty of other people are questioning as well.
When we will see Purdy back on the field to continue his career is anyone’s guess. The 49ers aren’t going to rush him through his rehab as they want to ensure that he is 100 percent healthy when he gets back on the field.
Whenever that may be, you can be sure that the Iowa State product will be motivated to continue proving people wrong and that he can be the franchise quarterback for the 49ers going forward.
