Joe Montana knows a thing or two about playing quarterback. During the San Francisco 49ers' win over the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, the four-time Super Bowl champion liked what he saw from rookie quarterback Brock Purdy, the last overall pick in the draft.
Purdy, who started the season as QB3 on the depth chart, replaced Jimmy Garoppolo after the veteran quarterback suffered a foot injury on Sunday. Garoppolo, who replaced Trey Lance in Week 2, is expected to miss seven to eight weeks.
Despite owning the NFL's top-ranked defense and a plethora of playmakers on offense, some are writing off the 49ers' Super Bowl chances now that they will be pushing forward with an inexperienced rookie quarterback. However, Montana isn't ready to give up on San Francisco's championship hopes just yet.
"You know what, if he does what he did last week, yeah," Montana told USA TODAY Sports when asked if the 49ers can still win the Super Bowl with Purdy at the helm of the offense.
Montana added, "Mr. Irrelevant was pretty relevant last weekend. I think they've got a chance. I mean, their defense is playing well. When you've got a good defense, you can make (up for) a lot of mistakes on offense, and those guys have a tendency to make it up for you."
Montana believes there is enough talent around Purdy to ensure the rookie quarterback can overcome potential mistakes. As legendary coach Bill Walsh once told him, it's OK to punt early rather than make a mistake when a good defense backs you up. San Francisco's defense has been playing some inspiring football.
"Don't put the young guy in a position where he has to feel like, 'Oh, I got to force one,'" Montana said. "Let him punt the ball, especially early. Just get himself in a rhythm, and that offense does that for you. I mean, heck, you got [RB Christian] McCaffrey and [TE George] Kittle and [WR Deebo] Deebo, and that receiving corps is pretty good."
The good news is that Purdy looked calm and collected in his impressive Week 13 outing against the Dolphins, much like Montana did throughout his Hall of Fame career. What advice does Montana have for the 22-year-old quarterback?
"As he becomes a starter at this point in time, he just has to not try to overthink things,'' Montana said. "Just go in, and you don't have to make plays. You've got guys on the outside that can make plays. So just relax."