Brock Purdy didn’t just ink a lucrative deal to stay with the San Francisco 49ers, he made sure that when he inevitably underperforms his $53 million average annual value, a disgruntled 49ers front office can’t just trade him away.
According to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, Purdy added a full no-trade clause in his deal as well, which means the team can’t trade him without his permission. Good for Purdy, bad for the 49ers. It essentially means the 49ers are handcuffed to Purdy for at least five years, regardless of his performance.
That comes into question because Purdy hasn’t exactly been the most reliable quarterback since his rise to stardom. That’s probably why he wanted to take all the control away from the team. Quarterbacks are getting passed around what feels like at an all-time high rate. Purdy wanted to make sure he didn’t have his name involved in any rumors.
Why Brock Purdy massive contract extension with San Francisco 49ers was a big risk
The 49ers put themselves at risk with the new Purdy deal because they are putting a lot of faith into his success. If it doesn’t work out, it could be one of the biggest wasted contracts, probably in NFL history. While Purdy has led the 49ers to the Super Bowl, he hasn’t really elevated this 49ers team individually with his play.
San Francisco didn’t want to dabble in a dry quarterback market, which is why they had to meet Purdy’s demands. But if there were better long-term options, I’m sure they would have thought twice about giving Purdy all that money.
This contract puts enormous pressure on Purdy to not just win, but deliver a championship. The 49ers had to offload Deebo Samuel to free up some space for Purdy’s extension. But in doing so, they took a utility player away from Purdy. Christian McCaffrey is coming off an injury-riddled season and Brandon Aiyuk is coming off a knee injury as well.
Purdy will have to elevate his play. He can no longer rely on his teammates to make the plays. He has to be an elite quarterback on this offense because he’s getting paid like one. If he doesn’t, well, that’s the risk the 49ers took.
They accepted whichever Purdy shows up post contract extension. San Francisco may not like it, but once the ink officially dries, it’s going to be exactly what they signed for. And that’s a risk since Purdy hasn’t proved yet he’s ready to be named among the top quarterbacks.