On Friday’s “First Take,” the former NFL veteran stated that Purdy “is not an elite quarterback. He is a product of his system.
“Biblically, the devil said to God, Job, the reason he serves you is because you give him everything,” Sharpe said. “He said if you remove that fence from around him, he will curse his maker. [God] said you can take everything but his life. He took the children, he took the sheep, he took everything! Job continued to be faithful.”
How does this biblical story, which Sharpe described quite succinctly, relate to the Niners’ 23-year-old quarterback? Purdy is Job, and his supporting cast — like receivers Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk and head coach Kyle Shanahan — are Job’s sheep and children.
“I’m not so sure if we take out Deebo, Kyle Shanahan or Aiyuki, we’d still see Brock Purdy. He’s a product of the system,” Sharpe continued.
Sharpe added that he’s not trying to “take away” from what Purdy has produced this season and “it’s good that he’s in the MVP conversation, not Patrick Mahomes,” rightfully acknowledging that Purdy and Mahomes are different people and players . He concludes that Purdy doesn’t have to do as much for his teams as the other top quarterbacks in the league.
There seems to be no end to the question of what to think of Purdy and what he has done in his young career. While this debate has moved the goalposts from whether he’s really good to whether he’s elite, the impact of Purdy’s teammates and coaches remains at the heart of the debate. No matter, the quarterback has yet to lose a regular-season game — the Niners are undefeated this season, in case you forgot — and leads the league in many statistical categories. He also threw for four touchdowns against the Cowboys on Sunday. If there is a light at the end of the tunnel, more and more former players say without a doubt that Purdy is good. Future Hall of Famer Tom Brady likes the Niners quarterback who makes doubters look foolish. Former 49er Alex Smith called Purdy “the real deal.” Hall of Famer Michael Irvin went so far as to call Purdy an MVP asset. Irvin also compared Purdy to Joe Montana — and he’s not exactly the first to do so.
However, now that biblical literature is embroiled in the debate over whether Purdy is good, great or elite at his job, it’s hard to imagine things slowing down anytime soon.
