Hot take island: Brock Purdy isn't nearly as bad as Greg Jennings thinks

The San Francisco 49ers have found success with quarterback Brock Purdy at the helm.

Brock Purdy has a 17-5 record as a starting quarterback. He has led the 49ers to the NFC's No. 1 seed and consecutive NFC Championship Game appearances in his two seasons. During the 2023 NFL season, Purdy led the league in passer rating (113.0) while recording the third-most passing touchdowns (31) and the second-best completion percentage (69.4).

For most young quarterbacks, that type of success would send the media into a frenzy of endless praise. For Mr. Irrelevant, however, that success has only brought more criticism.

In professional football, the spotlight often shines brighest on high-profile quarterbacks that enter the league with pre-draft hype. Hidden beneath the glamorous picks are the late-round gems like Purdy, who often find themselves in a unique predicament. Unlike their first-round peers, these quarterbacks receive few opportunities to prove their worth. First-round quarterbacks carry a significant financial investment and can sway public opinion on the franchise's leadership. Coaches and general managers get fired if a first-round quarterback turns out to be a bust, but nobody cares if a seventh-round quarterback gets released.

It should come as no surprise that while former first-round quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson and Jared Goff are all being lauded for reaching the conference championship, Purdy's accolades are being dismissed.

Greg Jennings says Brock Purdy isn't a "difference maker" like Justin Fields

Greg Jennings, a former two-time Pro Bowl wide receiver, expressed his views on Purdy during an appearance on FS1’s “The Carton Show.” Following a report that the 49ers wanted Tom Brady to be their starting quarterback, Jennings said that Purdy is a good quarterback but lacks the quality of being a difference-maker.

"Miss me with all the ‘he’s a good quarterback,’ you gotta get a difference maker,” Jennings said.

Jennings also suggested that the 49ers should replace Purdy with Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields. Since being selected in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft, Fields has led Chicago to multiple disappointing seasons. While he has shown the ability to make exciting and explosive plays, he has displayed a lack of consistency in processing, pre-snap adjustments, accuracy and decision-making ability. Those issues have plagued Chicago's 27th-ranked passing offense. Still, Jennings said that Fields has the potential to be a franchise quarterback, unlike Purdy.

“Is Brock Purdy a good quarterback? Yes," Jennings continued. "Is he a difference maker? No, he is not. If he does not win, you have to go and try to find a difference maker at that position. A guy maybe like Justin Fields."

"Prior to Brock Purdy, who was their quarterback? Jimmy Garoppolo," Jenning continued. "What did he do? The same thing! ... We've seen the same things with this 49ers team with different quarterbacks."

Based on Jennings' argument, is Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes not great? After all, Alex Smith's 2017 season with the Chiefs was almost statistically identical to Mahomes' 2019 Super Bowl-winning season. Should Aaron Rodgers' accomplishments with the Green Bay Packers have been dismissed because Brett Favre also played well before him? Should quarterback Jordan Love's successes be dismissed because his predecessor had even more success under the same coaching staff?

Jennings is not the only media member who has questioned Purdy's ability. Despite his success, Purdy has struggled to escape the shadow of skepticism that came with being the last pick of the 2022 NFL Draft. Skeptics have attributed Purdy's success to the brilliance of 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan's scheme or the talented weapons surrounding the quarterback. Former quarterback Cam Newton recently called Purdy a game manager. Other media personalities, such as Fox Sports' Nick Wright and ESPN's Ryan Clark, also criticized Purdy.

“He did everything I asked him to do," Wright said on First Things First. "But the truth is, I watched that game and thought he was the 49ers' biggest weakness for a vast majority of the game."

"The single hardest thing I had to do this year was act like Brock Purdy deserved to be in the conversations with [Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson]," Clark said on ESPN's First Take. "Brock Purdy benefits from having the sort of players he has at the skill positions around him."

Purdy led a fourth-quarter game-winning drive in the NFC Divisional Round game against the Green Bay Packers. The 49ers won that game largely because Purdy avoided the critical mistakes made by Green Bay quarterback Jordan Love, who has ironically been praised for his game-changing ability.

Some of Purdy's teammates, such as tight end George Kittle, and media members, such as NBC Sports' Peter King, have defended Purdy during the ongoing criticisms.

“Brock Purdy is a baller," Kittle said. "He’s a leader. He’s a winner. He’s everything you want in a quarterback. He's the reason why we're here."

“Brock Purdy ... can make clutch plays when it matters the most," King said. "He deserves more respect and appreciation."

Purdy will have a chance to silence his critics during Sunday's NFC Championship Game against the Detroit Lions.