Everyone should take a break with the Purdy-Brady comparisons

Purdy gets his first NFL start this Sunday against Brady as the Tampa Bay QB readies for his 329th career start. The gap in experience isn't the only thing different about the start of their careers.

Yes, both quarterbacks were drafted late in the NFL draft: Brady was the 199th pick in 2000 and Purdy received the "Mr. Irrelevant" designation by being the last pick in the 2022 draft. Both QBs were thrust into a starting role sooner than their teams would have liked.

Neither were expected to be franchise QBs and Cowher argues that status as underdogs fuels both:

"The one thing about both these guys, because of how they entered the NFL, there were always doubters," said Cowher.

The similarities end there, as the two QBs found themselves in two wholly different situations when they made their first start.

The New England team Brady took over for wasn't as close to Super Bowl contention as this San Francisco team is.

Per Football Outsiders, the Patriots ranked 20th in DVOA the week before Brady was forced into action against the New York Jets in Sept. 2001. They dropped to 25th the week following Brady's first appearance.

Purdy has a much better team surrounding him, per Football Outsiders. Entering last weekend, the 49ers ranked seventh in DVOA. The team moved up two spots in this week's DVOA rankings, but that movement was due to San Francisco's impressive defense. The team dropped from 10th in offensive DVOA last week to 14th this week.

Those numbers go to show just how much the odds were stacked against Brady when he made his Super Bowl run while Purdy has a roster expected to contend for a Super Bowl. 

Brady's top playmakers were RB Antowain Smith and WR Troy Brown, two players with one career Pro Bowl appearance between them.

Purdy is surrounded by talent including RB Christian McCaffery, WR Deebo Samuel, and TE George Kittle. They have five Pro Bowl appearances combined, and each made an All-Pro team.

 The surface-level view would seem to show Purdy is in a similar position as Brady in 2001. A deeper dive shows the context of their first seasons could not be more different. 

People are always itching to find the next Brady, but rushing to anoint a QB with zero career starts qualifies as jumping the gun. This Sunday, Brady can render the comparison to Purdy irrelevant.