What Brock Purdy and Jimmy Garoppolo Have in Common
Brock Purdy and Jimmy Garoppolo obviously aren't the same quarterback, but the particular way in which each one rapidly rose to a level of stardom on the 49ers that far outpaces their actual skill set is shockingly similar.
Let's compare.
As a rookie, Purdy took over a team that was coming off an NFL Championship appearance and was on a four-game winning streak after trading for Christian McCaffrey. Purdy started the final five regular season games of 2022 and, despite physical limitations that caused him to fall to the final pick in the draft, won all of his starts, then went to the playoffs and won two more before he tore his UCL early in the NFC Championship and finally lost. Which means he started his career 7-0. Extremely impressive.
Flash back to Jimmy Garoppolo. After sitting for years behind Tom Brady, Garoppolo won his first two career starts with the Patriots, then got traded to the 49ers in 2017, who were 1-10 when they finally made Garoppolo their starter. They were absolutely awful. Miraculously, Garoppolo won all five of his starts to finish the season -- he even led the 49ers to 44 points against the Jacksonville Jaguars, who had an elite defense that year and nearly went to the Super Bowl. Which means Garoppolo also started his career 7-0. Extremely impressive.
The 49ers thought they'd seen enough, thought Garoppolo was a franchise quarterback. So they made him the highest-paid player in the NFL, even though he hadn't proven much and had a decidedly modest skill set.
Then in 2018, he tore his ACL in his third start and missed the rest of the season. But in 2019, he won his first eight starts. And at that point, his career record was 16-2. No one seemed to care about his physical limitations. People said he was a winner. A few weeks later, he went to New Orleans and scored 48 points to beat Drew Brees and the Saints. Most people thought this performance proved Garoppolo was better than Brees and that the 49ers would win a Super Bowl a couple months later.
Of course, he wasn't, and they didn't. Despite all the games Garoppolo won early in his career, he still was mediocre and couldn't get the job done in the playoffs. And so, the 49ers replaced him.
Back to Purdy. The 49ers want to believe he can be their first franchise quarterback since Jeff Garcia, mostly because Purdy won his first seven starts. As if they learned absolutely nothing from the Jimmy Garoppolo Experience.
Purdy might improve and become a franchise quarterback eventually, but Garoppolo didn't. He stayed the same, while teams figured him out. Will that happen to Purdy? Thank goodness he isn't eligible for an extension this year, because the 49ers undoubtedly would give him a fat one if they could.
Purdy clearly is more mobile than Garoppolo, but Purdy also is smaller than him and has a weaker arm -- and that was before the UCL tear. It's possible Purdy can't stay healthy and never will be the same. We don't know. There's so much about him that's still a mystery.
Until the 49ers learn exactly who Purdy is, they need to keep their options open at quarterback and continue looking for a special one. Because the eye test says their current quarterback plays an awful lot like the previous one.
