Purdy has gone from Mr. Irrelevant to legitimate NFL starting quarterback in two seasons
Two years ago Brock Purdy was Mr. Irrelevant. Come the 2025 season, the 262nd selection of the 2022 NFL draft will be playing under a mega-rich contract extension.
The 24-year-old Purdy enters the final year of his rookie contract in 2024, which will see him make a salary of $985,000, according to OverTheCap.com. After going from the final pick of the NFL Draft to San Francisco 49ers starting quarterback to taking his team to the NFC championship game in his rookie season and then playing in a Super Bowl in year two, Purdy has set himself up for a massive payday.
The 49ers know that day is coming and should Purdy have another strong season, his price tag will continue to soar. Team CEO Jed York understands that when quarterbacks perform well in the NFL, you have to pay them.
“It’s a good problem when your quarterback is one of the highest-paid guys on your team and in the league,” York said, via The Mercury News, on Tuesday during the NFL’s annual owners meetings. “It’s what the market is. Brock is going to ask for something that no one has ever asked for before. I don’t know how many players are making over $40 million [a season] as a quarterback right now.”
There are currently nine quarterbacks in the NFL averaging over $40 million in salary per season. By 2025, two more could be in that category depending on how negotiations go for Purdy, as well as Dak Prescott of the Dallas Cowboys.
York, who is taking over as principal owner this week, understands you won’t go far in the NFL without an efficient quarterback. Purdy was a Pro Bowler in 2023 after throwing for 4,280 yards — a 49ers team record — and 31 touchdowns. He’s solidified a position that has been in flux over the last several years. Purdy (2023) and Jimmy Garoppolo (2019) are the only 49ers quarterbacks who have started 16 games in a season since 2014. Nine different players have been under center since Colin Kaepernick started every game during the 2013 and 2014 seasons.
“To me, the quarterback is the most important position not just in football, but all of sports, and those guys should be paid a lot of money,” York said.
The 49ers are expected to contend for the Super Bowl again, and Purdy’s rookie deal has allowed them to strengthen other areas of the team. One looming question yet to be answered this offseason is what they will do with wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk. He will make $14.1 million in his fifth year and the team has said they want to reward the 25-year-old who is coming off back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons.
Extensions for Aiyuk and Purdy are part of the puzzle that the 49ers front office will have to piece together as they set their salary cap picture moving forward. The players have earned pay raises and the organizational philosophy is to take care of your own first before dipping into the free agent market.
“Brandon, guys that you drafted, I’d much rather pay guys we drafted than guys we didn’t draft,” York said. “We’ll do everything we can, like we have in the past, to find a way to make those work.”
Looking back at the 7 players drafted at No. 31 overall during Kyle Shanahan’s tenure
The 49ers were one of the picks. But this list may not instill confidence.
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The San Francisco 49ers own the No. 31 selection in the 2024 NFL Draft. They could trade up if a prospect they covet falls in the draft — likely due to a run on a specific position, namely, quarterback. There’s also the possibility of the Niners trading out of the first round if a team makes an offer they cannot refuse.
Today, we’ll act as if the 49ers will stand pat at No. 31 and look back to see who was selected with the second to last pick in the first round to give us an idea of the caliber of players who fall in that range. We’ll go back to 2017.
2023 – Kansas City Chiefs – Felix Anudike-Uzomah – Kansas State – Edge rusher
When you’re a Super Bowl champion, you have the luxury of taking a swing at a pass rusher like Anudike-Uzomah. As a rookie, he rushed the passer 149 times and finished with a half sack, eight pressures, and seven quarterback knockdowns, per Sports Info Solutions.
The most notable name around this pick was Iowa’s tight end Sam LaPorta, who was selected at No. 34 overall and is well on his way to becoming the best in the NFL at his position.
2022 – Cincinnati Bengals – Daxton Hill – Michigan – Defensive Back
Hill played starter snaps with the Bengals this past season, as he was on the field for over 1,000 snaps. He finished with over 100 tackles, including eight for a loss. While he had a high number of missed tackles, Hill made up for it as a blitzer, where he had 11 pressures on 28 pass rushes. In coverage, Hill was targeted 28 times and had eight pass breakups and two interceptions.
Hill provided the ideal production from a player drafted at the end of the first round.
Other players drafted in this range were Breece Hall (No. 36 overall and George Karlaftis (No. 31).
2021 – Baltimore Ravens – Odafe Oweh – Penn State – Edge rusher
Oweh has been banged up during his career. He came in as a bit of a project and hadn’t fully put it together since his rookie season, where he had five sacks and 11 tackles for loss. He matched that sack total in 2023 but wasn’t as effective or hadn’t taken the next step in his progression.
This pick is an example of what happens when you take a swing on an athlete at the position — think another Penn State pass rusher in this year’s draft — and he doesn’t pan out as you had initially hoped.
The 2021 Draft has some serious star power in it at the top, but the talent fizzles out when you get beyond the top 12. Dolphins safety Jevon Holland was taken at No. 36 overall.
2020 – Minnesota Vikings – Jeff Gladney – TCU – Cornerback
Gladney was released after his rookie season after being indicted for domestic violence. He was found not guilty. The following May, Gladney and his girlfriend were killed in a car crash in Dallas, Texas. Gladney was 25.
2019 – Atlanta Falcons – Kaleb McGary – Washington – OT
Atlanta Falcons fans aren’t high on the right tackle with sub 33” arms. Not only were McGary’s arms short at the time, but he was 24, meaning there was little room for growth as a player. But McGary has started five years for Atlanta and played at least 800 snaps every season.
We are seeing a bit of everything at pick No. 31. Talent-wise, McGary was probably closer to No. 61 than No. 31. This should also be a cautionary tale of what happens when you draft for need instead of the best player available. Deebo Samuel was selected six picks later.
2018 – New England Patriots – Sony Michel – Georgia – RB
Michel was selected before Nick Chubb, his college teammate. He ran for over 900 yards in his first two seasons, but he has likely played his last down in the NFL after injuries took a toll on him. Michel did not play in the NFL in 2023 and didn’t make it through his rookie contract with the Patriots.
Other players drafted around No. 31 were Lamar Jackson, Nick Chubb, Courtland Sutton, and Calvin Ridley.
2018 – San Francisco 49ers – Reuben Foster – Alabama – LB
On the field, Foster remains one of the best linebackers to come into the NFL since 2017. He was an incredible player at Alabama who played with ferocity. But this is also what happens when the character doesn’t match the talent.
The 49ers took a risk on Foster by trading back into the first round to select him. As a rookie, he was a unanimous All-American and led the Niners in tackles for loss. But he was released during his second season after being arrested on a domestic violence charge in Florida at the Niners’ team hotel.
That wasn’t Foster’s first strike, as he was arrested twice in under a month in January and February 2018. Then, on April 12, Foster was charged with domestic violence.
T.J. Watt was selected one spot ahead of Foster. Ryan Ramczyk, who gave the Saints six tremendous years of right tackle play, was selected right after Foster.
