Why the 49ers are Intrigued by Quarterback Kurtis Rourke

Will the 49ers strike gold twice?

Nov 30, 2024; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Kurtis Rourke (9) drops back to pass the ball in the first quarter against the Purdue Boilermakers at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images | Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

The last time the 49ers drafted a quarterback in Round 7, they got Brock Purdy.

So when the 49ers drafted Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke in Round 7 this weekend, you had to be intrigued. Could this be the next Purdy? Will the 49ers strike gold twice?

After Day 3 of the draft, head coach Kyle Shanahan, general manager John Lynch, director of player personnel Tariq Ahmad and director of scouting and football operations Josh Williams each discussed what intrigues them about Rourke. Here's what they said:

SHANAHAN: "Just loved his size, loved how he throws, loved how he plays the position. Especially watching him this year, I don't think it was a coincidence how good of a year they had with the type of quarterback they had. Know he did it the whole year with a, he had a broken finger, a torn ACL and still was really, really impressive. And we're in a situation where getting a guy with a torn ACL and he probably won't be cleared by training camp, but it'll be close. It's not an issue for us right now. But obviously, with Brock and Mac (Jones) and love Tanner (Mordecai) too, so I thought it was just a very good valuable pick for us, for a guy who might not be ready for another year, because I think he's about seven-months out because he got it done after the season. But we're in a situation where we could take him and I think he would've gone a lot higher if he was healthy.”

LYNCH: "Really displayed his toughness. Played a lot of the year on a partially torn ACL. It was a previous ACL that was done in ‘22 and kind of a re-tear, but toughed it out and played through it, had surgery after the season. So, we took him with the understanding that he's not going to likely be cleared until training camp. But we just felt like there was a lot of talent, a lot of ability. The guy plays the game the right way. You can't have enough good quarterbacks and wanted to add him to the mix and we were able to do it in the seventh round and excited to do so."

AHMAD: "He's an older guy so he has been on the radar for a while. I love the vision. I love the way that he plays the game. He plays quarterback at a very high level, the processing, his mind. He throws on time. He throws with vision. He has all the ability to make every single throw in the pocket. There's a lot to like about him."

WILLIAMS: "He's a winner. He won at University of Ohio. He won at Indiana. He sees the field well, he's pretty accurate and he's tough. He played with a torn ACL. He showed his toughness there. He's a guy we're excited about."