In the latest chapter in the ongoing saga over Brock Purdy's playing ability, one of the best analysts in football has come to the young midfielder's defense.
Speaking to the 49ers' Matt Maiocco at NBC Sports Bay Area on Radio Row in Las Vegas, Greg Cosell, a senior producer for NFL Films, explained what makes Purdy a good quarterback and why the game manager's rhetoric surrounding the 49ers' signal caller is ridiculous.
When asked how Purdy diagnoses and responds to defensive combinations, Cosell noted that the second-year quarterback has made some mistakes during the playoffs but still has the ability to go off script.
“Actually, on one of his kicks against the Lions, he should have thrown the ball to Juwan Jennings, but he didn't, and Jennings was wide open,” Cosell told Mayoko. 12 yards and of course it was a great game, but he wasn't as sharp in that regard as he had been throughout his career.
“But, you know, Purdy, the thing about Purdy that we saw in the game against the Lions, the NFC Championship Game, is that he makes plays that go beyond Xs and Os. He makes off-script plays.
Maiocco responded in a humorous manner, saying that Cosell shouldn't say such things because it would imply that Purdy is not a poor game manager or quarterback in the system if he is able to make such off-script plays, prompting Cosell to dismiss negative talk about the quarterback in 49ers team.
“Yes, we're not going to touch on Matt, because the ridiculous nature of that discussion, it's baffling to me, and it's being talked about as if it's a real conversation and it's completely false,” Cosell explained.
Since Purdy took over the starting role for the 49ers, there has been an entire cottage industry centered around bashing the second-year quarterback, dismissing his success as merely a product of coach Kyle Shanahan's offense.
This upcoming game against the Kansas City Chiefs will provide the perfect opportunity for Purdy to silence his doubters and establish his own legacy in one of the NFL's most storied franchises.
Purdy has been leaning on other veterans in the locker room as well as 49ers legends Steve Young and Joe Montana as he prepares to face quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas.
Download and follow the 49ers Talk Podcast
“Food ninja. Friendly thinker. Explorer. Entrepreneur. Zombie junkie.