SANTA CLARA — The day Brock Purdy became a member of the 49ers, coach Kyle Shanahan cited one recognizable player as his top comparison.
And after Purdy's first NFL start, that similarity became even more striking.
In 2017, the 49ers signed Nick Mullens as an undrafted rookie from Southern Mississippi. This year, Brock Purdy was available for the 49ers to select with the 262nd and final pick in the draft.
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“I think there’s some traits that are very similar to Nick Mullens,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said on April 30, immediately following the selection of Purdy.
“People want to know how he can do it at this level, and that’s probably why we got him where we did. But this is a very hard position to play, and he does it extremely consistent.”
Purdy was a central figure Sunday in the 49ers’ 35-7 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in his starting debut at Levi's Stadium.
Purdy stepped in after injuries to Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo, and he delivered.
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He completed 16 of 21 pass attempts for 185 yards with two touchdowns, no interceptions and a passer rating of 134.0. Purdy also scrambled 2 yards for a touchdown on the first play of the second quarter.
The performance brought back memories of Mullens’ first career start.
In Week 9 of the 2018 season, Mullens was pressed into action after Garoppolo had already been lost for the season due to a torn ACL and backup C.J. Beathard was sidelined due to wrist and thumb injuries.
Mullens was called upon and, like Purdy on Sunday, was nearly perfect in a 34-3 victory over the then-Oakland Raiders at Levi’s Stadium on a Thursday night.
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He completed 16 of 22 pass attempts for 262 yards with three touchdowns, no interceptions and a passer rating of 151.9.
Mullens, now the Minnesota Vikings’ backup quarterback, went on to start eight games in both 2018 and 2020 with the 49ers. At the time, only Patrick Mahomes had thrown for more yards through his first 16 starts than Mullens.
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