Brock Purdy joins Hall of Fame company by taking 49ers to NFC Championship Game

Brock Purdy has the San Francisco 49ers back in the NFC Championship Game.

The Brock Purdy-led San Francisco 49ers are one win away from getting back to the Super Bowl.

In his first seven starts, Purdy has yet to lose a game. The former Iowa State star nearly went undrafted, as Mr. Irrelevant was the last pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. He may have landed in a perfect situation, but he is now 2-0 in NFC playoffs games with wins over the division rival Seattle Seahawks and the historic rival Dallas Cowboys. Next up for the 49ers are the Philadelphia Eagles.

While Purdy is carried by the great talent around him, he joined elite, dare I say it, hall-of-fame company with his second playoff victory. He is on a shortlist of four quarterbacks who were drafted in the sixth round or later that reached their conference’s title bout in their first season as the starter. The three others to do this are Tom Brady, Kurt Warner and Dieter Brock (who is that?).

So either Purdy is destined for Canton like Brady and Warner or he will be just another Brock…

Brock Purdy joined elite company with latest playoff win for San Francisco 49ers

While Purdy has brought new meaning to the term Mr. Irrelevant, keep in mind that Brady went in the sixth round to the New England Patriots, Warner went undrafted and so did Brock. Though Brady and Warner’s successes in the NFL are simply undeniable, Brock made his hay playing in the CFL, where he was a hall of fame quarterback primarily for the Winnipeg Blue Bumbers in the ’80s.

But besides being named Brock, the best thing Purdy can do to be more like Brady and Warner is to get to year two in the league. Brock only played one season in the NFL with the 1985 Los Angeles Rams. So as long as Purdy gets to year two in San Francisco, or any other franchise for that matter, he is absolutely destined for Canton. No team is hotter in football than the 49ers.

Overall, what this shows is under or undrafted players can have overwhelming success in the league. Football is a game of desperation and those who are the hungriest and the most mentally tough have a shot going up against guys who would run laps around them at the combine. Purdy still has plenty of room to grow, but he is flourishing in year one running Kyle Shanahan’s offense.

It should be noted that Brady and Warner took their teams to the Super Bowl in year one starting.