An ex-Marine turned analytics wonk is using biomechanical data to help teams find the NFL draft’s diamonds in the rough
As the NFL draft winds down on Saturday and the rookie free agent signing period kicks off, teams are on the clock to find the next Brock Purdy. San Francisco closed last year’s show after taking the 23-year-old quarterback with the 262nd and final pick on the board, a distinction that comes with the unfortunate nickname Mr Irrelevant. But when franchise QBs Jimmy Garoppolo and Trey Lance were both knocked out late last season, it fell to the Iowa State product to keep the 49ers’ playoff fortunes alive. All he did was win his first seven starts and lead San Francisco to the NFC championship game while posting the best rookie passer rating since Kurt Warner’s Cinderella Super Bowl run.
Now that Purdy has the 49ers moving on from Garoppolo and cooling on the idea of moving ahead with Lance (the enigmatic 2021 third overall draft selection that came at a significant cost to the team’s long-term future), pro talent evaluators are rushing to point out how, actually, they had Purdy pegged all along as Mr Relevant. Never mind if Steve Gara is among the few people who can say he saw clear signs of Purdy’s future success. “Even though he was in plain sight, to the NFL community, he was a hidden gem,” Gara says.
