Sports media personality Colin Cowherd has been a vocal critic of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy over the years.
But Purdy’s start to the 2026-27 NFL season has convinced Cowherd to switch his stance, which he did on Monday’s episode of “The Herd with Colin Cowherd”.
“My take [on Brock Purdy] was always where you get Christian McCaffrey, Kittle, Trent Williams, Deebo— you’ve got the keys to a Mercedes right out of college,” Cowherd said to former All-Pro quarterback Matt Hasselbeck.
“I think he sees [the field] as well as anybody. Watching his head, I mean he watches the whole field… I think Purdy’s playing as good a quarterback as anybody in the league right now. I really do. Matt, talk about seeing the field, Shanahan’s offense, this offense they run. How difficult is it? Because it’s like the kid’s mastering it.”
“I don’t think you’re a hater, Colin. I think you’ve just finally seen the light with Brock Purdy,” Hasselbeck said.
“I mean, I’ve said it for probably too long: I think he’s incredible. I think he’s a baller. I mean, you saw Dan Marino pregame going over and him like, ‘Hey, man. I’m so impressed by you…’ People who understand the position really respect him,” he continued.
Hasselbeck broke down a play where Purdy made an excellent choice during a bad play call that worked out for San Francisco. He then added, “I mean, I’m kind of a broken record, but if you want to know how to find and then develop a young quarterback, look at that guy. And it kind of happened accidentally for them, too, but this is a great example of how it can work.”
49ers fans are hoping Purdy can continue to prove Cowherd wrong this season.
