Brian Baldinger was in Santa Clara a few weeks ago for Brock Purdy’s memorable first NFL start against Tom Brady, when he outdueled the GOAT in a 35-7 beatdown at Levi’s Stadium.
Since then, Purdy has kept the 49ers win streak rolling, winning all four of his starts in impressive fashion. Baldinger joined hosts Al Sacco, Zain Naqvi and Brian Renick on 49ers Web Zone’s “No Huddle” podcast for a bonus episode which was posted Thursday.
From the beginning, Baldy said that the 23-year-old hasn’t played like a kid who was drafted about eight months ago. Before the Bucs game at Levi’s, Baldinger said he talked to Deebo Samuel about Purdy’s potential.
“I go, ‘Lemme go through a checklist with Purdy,’” Baldinger said. “So I go through a checklist. I go, ‘Can he get out of harm’s way? Is he fearless over the middle? He reads option routes. He can extend plays. He sees the whole field.’ He goes, ‘Check. Check Check. Go on.’ He agreed.”
Deebo had seen enough from Purdy the previous week against the Miami Dolphins. Looks like he was right.
In the weeks since beating the Bucs, Purdy and the Niners have passed various tests.
The Niners won the next week in Seattle to clinch the NFC West in grand fashion. Then came the 30-point second half in the rout of the Washington Commanders. Last week, Purdy authored a scintillating overtime comeback against the Las Vegas Raiders on an afternoon when the defense got shredded.
Purdy might not be the biggest guy or have the most impressive arm, but Baldinger is a huge believer in his intangibles. Purdy has thrown for two touchdowns in five straight games -- something Jimmy Garoppolo has never accomplished -- and led the NFL in passer rating since taking over as starter.
“What it comes down to is his eyes and how he sees the game,” Baldinger said. “It’s hard to evaluate that in the toolkit until a guy’s playing. I think his eyes are awesome and he sees it. Secondly, he just has a pocket awareness about him. … He plays with a calmness that you only hope anybody can play with. You don’t see the rookie stuff or the young quarterback stuff where guys panic or guys overreact or guys just play too frenetic. He doesn’t play anything like that.”
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