It's safe to say that most people have discarded the "game manager" label when discussing San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy and his accomplishments this season. However, some still hesitate to give Purdy full credit for the team's success, using the term "game manager" to diminish his contributions.
The "game manager" label is often used to downplay a quarterback's impact on his team rather than reflecting the term's true definition.
Cam Newton recently criticized Purdy and others, stating, "Brock, they're not winning because of him. He's managing the game. Purdy, Tua Tagovailoa, Jared Goff, and Dak Prescott—these are game managers. They're not difference-makers. They don't have to score every time. They just don't have to throw a pick every time, either. If we're really going to call a spade a spade, a game manager is different than a game changer."
How does the 49ers quarterback feel about the "game manager" label? When asked if he considers himself to be one, Purdy responded, "I don't know, man. I don't want to comment on that. I'm playing quarterback, trying to win games, and we'll see at the end of all of it."
Regardless of how Newton or others label him, Purdy and the 49ers are winning football games. The second-year quarterback has his team one win away from clinching the NFC West. They became the first team to secure a playoff berth and are in the driver's seat for home-field advantage. He may end up managing his 49ers to a Super Bowl victory.
Additionally, Purdy was asked about head coach Kyle Shanahan's coaching style. While reviewing film, Shanahan focuses mainly on the plays that went wrong and ignores the ones that went right. Purdy shared why this type of teaching resonates with him.
"I love that kind of coaching, honestly," Purdy said. "At the end of the day, you have a standard for yourself. You want to be consistent as best as possible. As a quarterback in the NFL, there's little room to mess up. And so I think, if you're in the NFL and you're a quarterback, you gotta be somewhat of a perfectionist. You want those two plays back. You want to learn from them and grow from them.
"If they're just telling you how great you are and stuff, there's going to be a time throughout the season, at some point, where you probably get exposed with maybe those little things like that. So Kyle does a great job, obviously, all the years of coaching and experience that he has, of pointing those things out and harping on them. Not just to down you out or anything, but to be real and help you. And we're all trying to win, and that's what it takes. And so he does a good job with that."