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49ers quarterback Brock Purdy was scheduled to spend his rookie season on the bench, holding a Surface tablet, and being the third quarterback to watch and learn. That was the plan.
Then in week 2, Trey Lance broke his fibula and tore his deltoid and syndesmotic ligaments. This pushed Purdy up the depth chart, allowing him to dress for games as Jimmy Garoppolo’s backup.
Then Garoppolo broke his foot on the first drive in week 13.
Suddenly, Purdy was the 49ers’ starter and their last hope of keeping their title hopes alive.
Eight weeks after rising to the top of the depth chart at the position, Purdy now has a chance to do something that has never been done before. No rookie quarterback has ever won a Super Bowl.
Purdy will become only the fifth rookie quarterback to start a conference championship game.
Bucs rookie Shaun King lost 11-6 to the Rams in the 1999 NFC Championship Game; Steelers rookie Ben Roethlisberger lost to the Patriots 41-27 in the 2004 AFC Championship Game; Ravens freshman Joe Flacco lost 23-14 to the Steelers in the 2008 AFC championship game; and Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez lost to the Colts 30-17 in the 2009 AFC Championship game.
“Right now, in a way, I’m still just focused on the game and what we could have done to be better,” Purdy said of the Cowboys after Sunday’s divisional round win. “But yeah, it’s pretty cool to see the clock go to zero and then you see the Niners over the Cowboys. That’s pretty sweet in the playoffs. So definitely kudos to the coaching team for getting us right all week. Defense, offense, special teams, they all just play. It takes everyone, not just one person or a bunch of guys. It literally takes everyone.
“I’m just so proud of the team and playoff football isn’t easy, so to get a win like that against a great team like Dallas and now going to the NFC Championship means a lot to us and to us. Yeah, when I take a step back, it’s pretty cool. Very grateful.”