49ers score massively good grades from 2022 NFL Draft selections

49ers Pick No. 262: Quarterback Brock Purdy, Iowa State

Mr. Irrelevant is… a quarterback? Well, put me in the rather large category of people who didn’t see this one coming.

Brock Purdy, of course, has no hope of unseating Trey Lance, but he put together a rather decent resume while at Iowa State and possesses some decent abilities to perhaps stick around as a backup quarterback for San Francisco, which admittedly will soon become a position of need.

Purdy reminds me a lot of former backup quarterback Nick Mullens in that he’s a smart and accurate quarterback who doesn’t offer much in the way of a vertical passing threat. This isn’t a huge problem, however, as the main focus of the offense in San Francisco is based more on getting receivers in space and allowing them to get the yards themselves.

Purdy could do this quite easily. He’s a functional dual-threat player with 19 rushing touchdowns in his collegiate career, and he took decent care of the ball with 81 touchdowns compared to just 33 interceptions.

You can see the limitations that make him a developmental prospect, however. He needs to work through progressions better, and he’s not someone who delivers the ball with a lot of velocity.

Backups are limited, however, and the important thing is he knows how to get the ball out with smart throws, and his overall skill set has him as a decent fit in this offense. He’s a practice squad quarterback and won’t beat out Nate Sudfeld, but weirder things have happened.

All in all, if Purdy can make the backup quarterback role his own, this won’t be a bad Mr. Irrelevant pick at all.

Grade: C