On Wednesday, San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch addressed reporters at the team's hotel, the Hilton Lake Las Vegas Resort and Spa, as his squad readies to take on the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 58.
Reflecting on the journey leading up to this point, Lynch acknowledged that it likely wouldn't have been possible without the emergence of quarterback Brock Purdy. As a rookie last season, Purdy was thrust into the lineup during a Week 13 game against the Miami Dolphins following an injury to Jimmy Garoppolo.
It's worth noting that Garoppolo was on the field because the Week 1 starter, Trey Lance, had suffered a season-ending injury earlier in the season.
Last week, 49ers CEO Jed York shared a story about head coach Kyle Shanahan pulling him aside early in training camp, offering an honest assessment of Purdy, the rookie buried in the depth chart.
"I think our third-string quarterback is our best quarterback," Shanahan had told York.
This revelation was unexpected, given the investment the 49ers had made in Lance, whom they initially hoped would become the face of the franchise. Today, Lance is with the Dallas Cowboys, and Garoppolo is with the Las Vegas Raiders.
"Like Kyle said earlier, we could see right away we had something," Lynch told reporters. "But we also had other guys that we had a lot of belief in, so I think when Jimmy went down [against] Miami and he went in there and handled it, because you never really know until you know."
Purdy didn't resemble a rookie against the Dolphins. He exhibited the leadership of a seasoned veteran, guiding the 49ers to a 33-17 victory.
"He got thrown into that game, and the poise with which he attacked that game—and if you think back to that game, they came after him," Lynch continued. "It wasn't like they sat back and made it easy. They came after him, and he stepped up to the challenge and made everyone say 'Wow.'"
Purdy went on to win his next seven starts, including two playoff games. His first loss didn't come until he suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his throwing arm during the NFC Championship Game.
A year later, Purdy has the 49ers on the brink of a Super Bowl victory in only his second NFL season.
San Francisco acquired Purdy with the last overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. The NFL now knows that the quarterback was highly undervalued then, and NFL scouts and analysts misjudged his potential in the league.
"Shame on everyone for waiting so long, including us," Lynch said. "I think he's proven that he probably should have been drafted a lot higher, but I'm just grateful we have him. I really am."
Kirk Larrabee contributed to this article.
