With San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo officially out for the season with a broken foot and former starter Trey Lance out for the season with an ankle injury, the team will turn to rookie Brock Purdy to start from now on. Purdy was selected with the last pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, he was deemed "Mr. Irrelevant." He is now very relevant, as he looks to help lead what was one of the top NFC teams to a playoff run.
Purdy's first start will be against seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady, and the rookie said he is looking forward to facing a quarterback of his caliber. Purdy noted that Brady has been playing for more than his entire life, so there will be quite the QB age gap when the 49ers face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Dec. 11.
"Yeah, I think it's cool," Purdy said, via NBC Sports. "I think it's really cool. Dude has been playing football longer than I've been alive. So yeah, to have a first start against the GOAT, it's going to be pretty cool. But just any other game, man, it's got to be efficient, do my thing and play football."
Brady is 45 years old, while Purdy is just about half his age at 22. Purdy was born on Dec. 27, 1999, right before Brady was drafted in April of 2000. When Purdy was born, Brady was graduating from Michigan and concluding his college football career. Purdy had just turned three when Brady won his first Super Bowl.
With such an age gap comes a serious gap in stats as well. Here's a look at how the two quarterbacks compare:
| Category | Tom Brady | Brock Purdy |
|---|---|---|
Wins | 248 | 0 |
Passing touchdowns | 638 | 2 |
Passing yards | 87,571 | 276 |
Age | 45 | 22 |
Unsurprisingly, this is the largest gap for a starting quarterback matchup in every category all-time (per the CBS Sports research team).
The Iowa State product will become the seventh quarterback to make their first start against Brady, joining a club that includes Luke Falk, EJ Manuel, Jake Locker, Tyler Palko and Matt Flynn, with all six quarterbacks losing that first game. With the Bucs struggling this season, standing at 5-6 heading into their Monday Night Football game against the New Orleans Saints, Purdy has a good chance of being the first to earn his first win against Brady.
The 49ers are currently in a better spot than the Buccaneers, at 8-4. After Garoppolo was ruled out this weekend against the Miami Dolphins, Purdy was able to close out the game with a 33-17 win. Purdy went 25-of-37 with 210 yards, two touchdowns and one interception in the win.