Former NFL head coach Jon Gruden made some news recently by saying he thinks the San Francisco 49ers should build a statue of quarterback Brock Purdy.
While the honor may be a bit premature, Gruden still heaped praise on Purdy.
In a video posted on social media, Gruden was asked about Purdy and he said: "Well, they should build a statue of him in San Francisco. He covered their a**, man. They gave up three first-round draft choices to get a guy they got rid of. You guys got him in Dallas. And this guy's the last pick of the draft, he's taken you to the Super Bowl, he's taken them to the brink. He deserves to get paid and I'll just leave it at that."
Now, Gruden's proposed statue may have been a bit facetious, but his overall point is still very valid. It is scary to consider where the 49ers would be right now if they had not selected Purdy with the last pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. They gave up so much to select Trey Lance who is looking more and more like a complete bust, but by drafting Purdy they were almost able to nullify that huge mistake.
Purdy led the 49ers about as close as you can get to winning a Super Bowl last season. He led a drive that gave them a three-point lead in regulation with less than two minutes on the clock and then in overtime led them on another drive that resulted in a three-point lead that was ultimately erased by the Kansas City Chiefs who scored a touchdown and won the game.
While the 2024 season did not work out for the 49ers and Purdy did not look as good as he did in the 2023 season, he still had good games and showed he can deal with adversity which may be good for him in the long run.
It seems likely that the 49ers will heed Gruden's advice by paying him quite a bit of money this offseason. However, we have yet to hear any plans on a statue as of yet. If just one thing had gone differently in last year's Super Bowl and the 49ers had emerged victorious, then a statue may very well have been in the cards. But for a franchise with the championship pedigree of the 49ers, there are no statues for second place.
If Purdy is able to lead the 49ers to a Super Bowl someday then perhaps Gruden's comments will prove to be prophetic, but for now they are a bit premature.
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