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2024 was supposed to be Brock Purdy's year with the San Francisco 49ers.
He was coming off of a Super Bowl loss, was entering into the final year of his rookie-scale contract, and was set up perfectly for a massive new payday after four seasons played on the cheapest deal any drafted player can sign, considering his “Mr. Irrelevant” status, if he simply matches his 2023 numbers.
Unfortunately, things did not go as planned, and not only have Purdy's individual stats suffered from playing with a diminished supporting cast, but his team has suffered, too, with the 5-7 49ers now very unlikely to make the playoffs unless things shake out darn-near perfectly down the stretch.
Disappointing? You bet, but it hasn't been all bad for Purdy, as, during his Week 14 media session, he noted that he plans to use this year as a learning experience as he continues to grow as both a player and a leader.
“For sure. I really do think you can learn so much when things aren’t going your way for who you are, for the guys around you, how guys respond and react to adversity rather than everything’s perfect, you’re winning games, and everyone thinks that it’ll never end and you’ll always be perfect,” Purdy told reporters. “You can learn some things from that, but not a whole lot. But I think when you face some adversity, that’s really where true colors show, all that kind of stuff. But more than anything, how you respond to it and how the respect you’ve earned from other guys when you can show that you can get out of it and you can pull through and be the guy to lead the way. So learning a lot right now for sure as a young quarterback in the NFL.”
Is Purdy genuinely making lemonade out of lemons, or does he simply know what one should or shouldn't say in a press conference when they are in the middle of a three-game losing streak? Who's to say? But either way, if Purdy takes a leap forward after a few steps back, the winner will be his 2025 team, be that the 49ers or some other squad that pays him a king's ransom.
Brock Purdy believes leadership matters now more than ever
Asked elsewhere during his media session if leading a losing team is harder than a front runner, Purdy said yes, noting that he needs to keep his team together now more than ever to avoid an internal collapse.
“I think just what you’re trying to do as a leader matters with trying to get into the playoffs, what you’ve got to do for your job and then trying to elevate other people around you and their job,” Purdy told reporters.
“Whereas, if you’re on a team where everything’s good, and you’re winning games, and you know that you have some room to honestly fail and know that you’re going to still make it and stuff, I feel like that’s just a little bit different. But right now, the sense of urgency has just got to be higher, and it’s got to be on all the time. And we have no room to really slip up right now, not a lot of margin for error. So for me it’s like, I’ve got to be on top of my stuff, my game, and just make sure the standard is still there within our team and hold everybody to the standard to win here. So that’s how I look at it.”
So far, so good for Purdy, as the 49ers appear connected in their collective anger at how the season has turned out instead of pointing fingers individually. If that stays true for the next month, maybe San Francisco can rally after all.
