Brock Purdy has faced his share of criticism from the moment he took over as the 49ers' starter last season, but after his latest performances, some pundits are tired of the constant negative comments.
On a recent episode of the “Pat McAfee Show,” ESPN’s Pat McAfee sounded off on Purdy's haters, launching into an impassioned defense of the young 49ers quarterback.
“I’m done with the Brock Purdy slander,” McAfee said Tuesday. "This dude is in his second year in the NFL, out of Iowa State, he was playing against Washington State just a couple years ago. Now he’s in his second year in the NFL, back-to-back NFC Championship Games, last pick of the draft, we all understand that.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
"This guy was handed absolutely nothing through this entire process and now it’s like ‘Well we got to come out and kill this guy because he didn’t have a perfect game in the divisional round against the Green Bay Packers.’ ”
McAfee then went on to list all the stats that show just how well Purdy has played, and he made sure to point out that with the 24-year-old at the helm, the 49ers have one of the NFL's best records and best overall offenses.
“Including the playoffs, the 49ers are 20-5 and average 29.2 points per game with Brock Purdy as their starter, that’s top-five in the league.” McAfee said. "They’re 17-3 and average 30.1 points per game when Deebo and Trent Williams play, one of those losses came in the NFC title, by the way when he was knocked out in the first quarter.
San Francisco 49ers
"During the regular season -- this one -- he led the NFL in yards per attempt, yards per completion, first downs per attempt, passer rating, total EPA, success rate, and total QBR. And then, on that fourth quarter go-ahead touchdown drive against the Green Bay Packers, he went 6-of-7, and passed or rushed for 58 of the 69 yards that they gained.
“I’m sick of it, I can’t take it anymore.”
While it’s hard to argue with the kind of success Purdy has had with the 49ers, many in the sports media realm believe it’s due to Kyle Shanahan’s offensive system and the impressive amount of weapons San Francisco has. Even after leading the team to a comeback victory against the Green Bay Packers in the NFC divisional round, there were still plenty of doubters like ESPN’s Ryan Clark.
Though Purdy’s clutch performance against the Packers did end up winning over some critics, such as Amy Trask, for whatever reason there still remains a sizeable contingent of media personalities who doubt that Purdy is the real deal.
Purdy and the 49ers now are set to face off against the Detroit Lions in the NFC Championship Game with a spot in the Super Bowl on the line.