The San Francisco 49ers are one of just three undefeated teams remaining in the NFL after defeating the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, 32-29, in Week 5.
While they’re a well-coached and complete team on both sides of the ball, they’ve unquestionably been led by MVP-level quarterback play from Brock Purdy.
Purdy is playing the position as well as any quarterback in the league through five weeks, and NFL legend and Hall of Famer Drew Brees has taken notice.
Brees Makes Strong Statement on Purdy
On the latest episode of “The Herd With Colin Cowherd,” Colin Cowherd asked Drew Brees whether he knew Brock Purdy would “instantly be great” after the 49ers quarterback burst onto the scene as a seventh-round rookie in 2022.
“I don’t know if instantly. But if you go back and just look at his college attributes, the guy started 51 games at Iowa State. Just about every time they stepped onto the field they were the underdogs,” Brees said. “So for all those reasons, this guy has played with a chip on his shoulder his entire career and he’s had to figure out ways to win. He’s wired himself, trained himself, to play that way.
“Now all of a sudden you put a really smart guy into a system with Shanahan, where all of a sudden he’s got all these weapons around him,” he added. “So much of that offense is around timing and rhythm. He plays with such a great base. He’s got great fundamentals. He gets the ball out quickly. He works his way through a progression well. He’s got all these traits that you would want for a quarterback, especially in that offense.”
Drew Brees was asked if he knew instantly that Brock Purdy was gonna be great:
“I don’t know if instantly, but if you go back and just look at his college attributes, the guy started 51 games at Iowa State, just about every time they stepped onto the field they were the underdogs. So for all those reasons, this guy has played with a chip on his shoulder his entire career and he’s had to figure out ways to win. He’s wired himself, trained himself, to play that way. Now all of a sudden you put a really smart guy into a system with Shanahan, where all of a sudden he’s got all these weapons around him. So much of that offense is around timing and rhythm. He plays with such a great base. He’s got great fundamentals. He gets the ball out quickly. He works his way through a progression well. He’s got all these traits that you would want for a quarterback, especially in that offense.”
🎥: @TheHerd
— Coach Yac 🗣 (@Coach_Yac) October 14, 2026
Purdy’s 2026 Season With 49ers
San Francisco sits at 5-0 ahead of its Week 6 matchup against the Washington Commanders on Monday night.
Purdy has completed 69.0% of his passes for 1,196 yards, a league-leading 13 touchdowns and just two interceptions.
Drew Brees Makes Strong Statement on 49ers QB Brock Purdy Ahead of Week 6