San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy has his fair share of detractors, but there are still those who have plenty of confidence in the youngster. Take 49ers legend Jerry Rice, for example.
During an appearance on The Warner House podcast this week, Rice paid Purdy one heck of a compliment, saying he reminds him of one of the greatest signal-callers ever.
“Brock reminds me a lot of [Joe] Montana,” Rice said (h/t Matthew Davis of Heavy.com). “His coolness, he doesn’t get rattled, and you need your quarterback to be that way.”
Rice’s statement will surely raise some hairs, as most people wouldn’t even think of comparing Purdy to Montana, but let’s keep it in context: Rice was specifically referring to Purdy’s poise.
Many feel that Purdy is merely a product of Kyle Shanahan’s system and that he relies too heavily on Christian McCaffrey and other key offensive pieces for support, but Rice thinks that Purdy is equally important to San Francisco’s offense.
“I don’t see us winning a championship without Brock Purdy,” Rice said. “I don’t see us winning a championship without CMC (McCaffrey).”
Purdy is coming off of yet another terrific performance, as he went 16-for-25 with 242 yards and four touchdowns in a Week 15 win over the Arizona Cardinals.
On the season overall, Purdy is leading the NFL with 29 touchdown passes to go along with 3,795 yards. He has thrown just seven interceptions and is completing 69.8 percent of his passes. Not only that, but Purdy is also pacing the league with a 119 passer rating.
The 23-year-old was selected by the Niners with the last overall pick of the 2022 NFL Draft and was pressed into starting duty during his rookie campaign due to season-ending injuries to Jimmy Garoppolo and Trey Lance. Purdy impressed, going 5-0 in five starts.
Brock Purdy and the 49ers are 11-3 and will take on the Baltimore Ravens on Christmas Day. They have won six games in a row.
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