Can the 49ers win a Super Bowl with Brock Purdy?
First things first: Can they even get to a Super Bowl with Purdy?
We will find out the answer to the second question next week, when either the Lions or Buccaneers head to Santa Clara, Calif., to try to knock off the No. 1 seed in the NFC. What we do know, loud and clear, is that the 49ers Saturday night were able to get off the mat, more than once, to catch and finally pass the upstart Packers, winning 24-21 with a last-gasp drive that allowed the Niners to avoid what would have been a colossal upset at Levi’s Stadium.
And what we should know is that the 49ers escaped in spite of Purdy for long, long stretches until he saved his best for last, which was just good enough in the NFC divisional playoff round but might not be good enough from here on out.
For most of the 60 minutes, Purdy looked more like the Mr. Irrelevant line on his resume than the fringe MVP candidate he was during the 2023 season. At times, operating in a steady rain, he looked as if he could barely control the wet football in his gloved and then ungloved right hand. At times, it looked as if Jordan Love, the Packers budding star, would be the young quarterback to take his team onward and upward and Purdy would be the one responsible for sending his team to an early playoff outster.
“The weather, that’s football, you got to overcome that,’’ Purdy said afterward. “After a while I got into a rhythm. That’s on me. Overall we got to find a way to win and we made it work.’’
This was shaping up to be a nightmare for Purdy until he awakened. The Niners trailed 21-17 when he took over on his 31-yard line with 6:18 remaining. He had lost his top receiver, Deebo Samuel, in the first quarter and that well-oiled machine of an offense he operated so efficiently for the past several months was clunking along. If Purdy did not come up with an answer the Niners would head into the offseason with so many unanswered questions.
The response: Purdy completed 6 of 7 passes for 47 yards. The big strike was a 17-yarder to seldom-used Chris Conley for 17 yards. He scrambled for nine yards to the Green Bay 6-yard line. From there, he did the smartest thing any quarterback could do: He handed the ball to Christian McCaffrey and McCaffrey ran it into the end zone with 67 seconds left for the winning points. When Dre Greenlaw intercepted Love in the final minute, the 49ers had survived, and advanced, barely.
“There’s four quarters for a reason,’’ Purdy said. “The way it started, it’s like ‘Man, I got to be better, I got to play efficient football.’ When it comes down to it, when the season’s on the line you got to make it happen for the boys around you.’’
Just like that, the 49ers are in the NFC Championship game for the fourth time in the last five years. Just like that, coach Kyle Shanahan accomplished something he has never done before as a head coach. He had been 0-30 when trailing by five or more points entering the fourth quarter. The 49ers were down 21-14 entering the fourth quarter.
Purdy finished 23 of 39 for 252 yards and one touchdown pass, a 32-yard strike to tight end George Kittle to put the 49ers ahead 7-3 in the second quarter. Most of the way, though, it was a slog for Purdy, who in some ways feels like an outlier in these playoffs.
The Elite Eight in the quarterback department heading into this weekend included a little bit of everything. A proven champion (Patrick Mahomes). A dynamic MVP-in-waiting (Lamar Jackson). A dynamic potential future MVP (Josh Allen). An enthralling rookie (CJ Stroud). Two former No. 1 picks (Jared Goff and Baker Mayfield) looking to make good with new teams. A budding star (Jordan Love).
What do those seven quarterbacks have in common? All were first round draft picks. Purdy was a seventh rounder in the 2022 NFL Draft, the very last player selected: No. 262.
Purdy’s second pass of the game should have been a pick-six, as Purdy hit safety Darnell Savage right between the numbers and he dropped the interception. Purdy shook his head, knowing he was fortunate he had not put his team in a 10-0 hole.
“There were times when we were all off at times,’’ Shanahan said. “Brock made some big plays in this game, missed a couple, but leading us down on that last drive and getting the win, that’s all you can ask for.’’
Is that all you can ask for?
Purdy has now guided the Niners to three playoff victories, making him the fifth quarterback in NFL history to win a playoff game in each of his first two seasons. He lives for another day but probably will have to be better than this.
