Most of the starting quarterbacks in the NFL have been locked down to long-term contracts that will pay them well for years to come.
But the biggest quarterback set to hit the free agent market is San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy.
Coming off a season plagued with injuries that sunk the Niners to a poor 6-11 record, Purdy is hoping for a big 2025 that could lead into a mᴀssive payday for him.
It’s believed that the Niners won’t be in a position to find a quarterback much better than the former ‘Mr. Irrelevant’, so locking Purdy down now would follow conventional wisdom.
But with a rumored price tag of $50million per year floating around his name, some anonymous NFL executives and coaches told Sports Illustrated that it might be better for San Francisco to hold off on inking that contract.
‘I’d play it out as long as possible without paying him if I was San Francisco, including using tags, etc.,’ one high-ranking NFC personnel man told the outlet. ‘I think paying him $50-plus million is very risky.’
Executives are anonymously warning the 49ers to exercise caution on Brock Purdy’s contract
The 25-year-old quarterback is on track to earn a deal worth $50million per year
Last year, Purdy saw weapons like receiver Brandon Aiyuk (11) suffer season-ending injuries
At age 25, Purdy is much younger than the echelon of quarterbacks all making $50m plus per year like Dak Prescott, Jordan Love, Trevor Lawrence, Justin Herbert and Tua Tagovailoa to name a few.
And yet, Purdy’s already much more accomplished than all those quarterbacks – having been to two NFC Championship games and a Super Bowl.
But some executives and coaches believe that Purdy is too-reliant on his teammates to reach that success and make him look good in the process.
‘Beyond the five or six [quarterbacks] that don’t need people around them, he’s in that group of guys that do need good players around him but can play at a high level,’ an NFC offensive ᴀssistant coach told SI.
As for a contract, the Niners do have the option of franchise tagging Purdy in the offseason and continuing to negotiate from there. A temporary deal that allows San Francisco to let Purdy develop a bit more before getting a big payout is another option, but one executive told SI he doesn’t think Purdy’s agents will let that happen.
‘If they think he’s the guy, they’ve probably got to pay him the $50-plus million,’ the executive to SI.
‘If not, how and who will they get to be a better fit? Maybe they do a bridge like Green Bay did with their guy, but his agents will probably not do that. Tough deal.’
Last season, Purdy lost top weapons like running back Christian McCaffrey, wide receivers Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel, and Ricky Pearsall, and тιԍнт end George Kittle to injuries.
Samuel departed in a trade, but the rest are set to come back in a тιԍнтly contested NFC West division.
