Former NFL quarterback turned ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky doesn't understand why some are so critical of the San Francisco 49ers' current quarterback situation. He acknowledges that there are still some concerns surrounding Brock Purdy, who has only started eight career games and is returning from offseason surgery on his throwing arm.
ESPN's "First Take" presented a question: Are you confident that Purdy can lead the 49ers to a Super Bowl?
Orlovsky made his opinion clear.
"Yes, he can lead them to the Super Bowl," the analyst said with conviction.
Orlovsky doesn't just believe in Purdy. He believes in one of his backups, too.
"I think Brock Purdy and/or Sam Darnold can take them to the Super Bowl, if I'm being dead honest," Orlovsky admitted. "Absolutely. Absolutely. Sam Darnold is incredibly talented. He's the most talented quarterback they have on the roster, throwing-the-ball-wise."
Whoever is in there at quarterback will have the support of one of the league's most talented rosters. That's a recipe for success. The analyst pointed toward the great defense, the weapons on offense, and head coach Kyle Shanahan as the play caller.
Orlovsky also loved what he saw from the offense last season once Purdy replaced Jimmy Garoppolo.
"I think the thing that changed for their offense a little bit with Brock Purdy, post-Jimmy Garoppolo, was a little bit of the creativity," Orlovsky said, "a little bit of I don't have to call the perfect play for this young man because he's going to be able to either make the right choice or do something if it's not ideal.
"Kyle was, as a play caller, I don't want to say burdened, but it felt if the play call wasn't ideal in that situation with Jimmy, it wasn't going to work out well. Jimmy's a good player. I'm not here to bash Jimmy. Brock Purdy brought a little bit of creativity to their offense."
The 49ers have been to the NFC Championship Game in three of the last four seasons. Can they get there again with Purdy at the helm of Shanahan's offense for an entire season? The quarterback helped them get there last season as a rookie.
"So, can he do it again? is going to be the big challenge," Orlovsky admits. "I believe he's capable of that. And then, can he stay healthy? We know the history of quarterbacks there. They don't stay healthy. And he obviously got hurt last year. Those are their two biggest questions, more so than is the young man good enough? I think he is, and I think he'll do it again, but he has to go show that he could do it in the NFL for a second season."
Coming off surgery, Purdy has been under the media microscope during training camp, with significant chatter surrounding the interceptions and near-interceptions he has thrown in practices. The analyst believes the concerns are overblown.
"He's still figuring out who and what he is at the NFL level, too," Orlovsky said of the 49ers' young quarterback. "So maybe there's plays that he's running in camp [that] he never ran last season. ... So he's learning still. So we got to stop doing this to these quarterbacks. This is [what] training camp should be. We're trying to get overly aggressive with our decision-making and [putting] the ball in certain situations to try and see what we can and can't do."
