NFL play-offs: Remarkable rise of San Francisco 49ers' 'Mr Irrelevant' Brock Purdy

The road to Super Bowl 57 continues this weekend with the divisional round of the NFL play-offs.

The post-season got off to a thrilling start last week with some stirring fightbacks and nail-biting finales - just one score separated the teams in four of wildcard weekend's six games.

Now it is time for Patrick Mahomes and Jalen Hurts to join the party after their teams, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles, earned a bye for the first week of the play-offs for finishing the regular season with the best records in their respective AFC and NFC conferences.

But it is a fellow quarterback most NFL fans hadn't heard of until last month who is threatening to steal their thunder in this season's play-offs.

Brock Purdy has come from nowhere to become the San Francisco 49ers' starting quarterback.

Now the 23-year-old aims to lead the five-time Super Bowl winners to this season's big game in Arizona on 12 February.

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What is 'Mr Irrelevant'?

Melanie Salata-Fitch (second left) welcomed Brock Purdy and his family to 'Irrelevant Week' last June

In the off-season, the 49ers were contemplating whether their starting quarterback would be veteran Jimmy Garoppolo or Trey Lance, who they selected with the third pick of the 2021 draft.

Purdy didn't factor in the conversation. Little wonder since he was this season's 'Mr Irrelevant', the player selected last in the draft, which in 2022 was the 262nd pick.

Former 49ers receiver Paul Salata founded the nickname in 1976 and established 'Irrelevant Week', a string of events to "celebrate football's underdog" and raise money for charity.

Each year Salata, who died in 2021 aged 94, would announce the last pick, with his daughter taking over in 2014, and invite him to spend a week being feted in California.

For Purdy, that included sailing, surfing, a visit to a baseball game and a pub crawl with fans. He was showered with gifts and embraced his new nickname, wearing a 49ers jersey with 'Mr Irrelevant 262' on the back.

"It was all fun and games in terms of taking the trip and meeting great people, but I didn't care which round or which pick I was, or if I was undrafted," he said.

"I just wanted to prove to myself that I can play at this level, and I got an opportunity to play for the 49ers, so I'm very thankful."

After injuries to Lance and then Garoppolo, Purdy got that opportunity last month. Since then the third-choice quarterback has been anything but irrelevant, making a record-breaking start to his NFL career.

Why was Purdy drafted so late?

As you can imagine, there is usually a reason players are picked so late in the draft, and few Mr Irrelevants have gone on to make an impact in the NFL.

Purdy made 46 starts in four years of college football at Iowa State, but there were concerns over his consistency, his arm strength and his mobility, as well as his physical presence as 6ft 1in is not seen as ideal for a quarterback.

But he made the 49ers' 53-man roster before being elevated to starter for week 14 at home to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Purdy's family got tickets weeks earlier so they could watch seven-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady play for the Bucs. Little did they know that Purdy would not only play too, he would become the first quarterback to beat Brady in his first NFL start, as the 49ers won 35-7.

And he has shown it was no fluke by continuing to win and make history. In his first six starts Purdy has thrown more touchdown passes - 14 - than legendary 49ers quarterbacks Joe Montana and Steve Young.

The 49ers have averaged more points since Purdy came in, and after beating the Seattle Seahawks 41-23 last week are on an 11-game winning streak.

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Is Purdy the real deal?

Purdy finished with 332 passing yards, three passing touchdowns and one rushing touchdown against Seattle

The 49ers have the best offence and best defence in the NFL, and before his first start Montana had this advice for Purdy: "You've got a really good team around you, you just have to be the mailman - give the ball to the guys that can run."

With an experienced coaching staff calling the right plays to deliver to their star playmakers, a system quarterback or game manager could get the job done in the short term.

But Purdy has shown he is more than that. He stayed composed after a shaky start against Seattle and, when under pressure, he was more creative and elusive than his scouting reports suggested.

"Being with him in the huddle, he's poised, calm and extremely confident," said running back Christian McCaffrey.

"He's exactly what you would want in a quarterback. No moment is too big for him, and he makes corrections quickly."

Last week's win made Purdy the seventh rookie quarterback to win their first play-off game. If the 49ers win at home to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday he will be just the third to win multiple games in the post-season.

No rookie quarterback has reached the Super Bowl before. Do that and the 262nd pick could replace number three pick Lance as next season's starter.

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What else to look out for

Purdy's remarkable rise is not the only feel-good story of the play-offs, as Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin continues his recovery after suffering a cardiac arrest during the penultimate round of the regular season.

The game against the Cincinnati Bengals was cancelled, but just 20 days later the two sides meet again on Sunday, and the Bills have not ruled out Hamlin attending the emotional reunion having visited the team several times this week.

"He's a positive energy bubble that's just floating around the facility," said Buffalo's offensive lineman Dion Dawkins.

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While Purdy celebrated a dream play-off debut, Trevor Lawrence was enduring a nightmare in his as the Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback threw four interceptions in the first half against the Los Angeles Chargers.

But Lawrence showed why he was 2021's number one draft pick, throwing four touchdown passes as the Jags fought back to win 31-30 and set up a mouth-watering game against the 2018 MVP Mahomes, who aims to lead the Kansas City Chiefs to a third Super Bowl in four years.

The Philadelphia Eagles return to action against their divisional rivals the New York Giants, who upset the Minnesota Vikings on the road last week for their first play-off win in 11 years.

Divisional-round fixtures

(away team first, kick-off times GMT)

Saturday, 21 January

Jacksonville Jaguars v Kansas City Chiefs (21:30)

New York Giants v Philadelphia Eagles (01:15 Sun)

Sunday, 22 January

Cincinnati Bengals v Buffalo Bills (20:00)

Dallas Cowboys v San Francisco 49ers (23:30)

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