HENDERSON, Nev. — Brock Purdy looked relaxed in front of the hundreds of reporters packed into the 49ers’ hotel conference center Wednesday.
San Francisco held its first significant practice at a temporary practice field on the UNLV campus, as Purdy and his teammates try to get back to normal in four days with the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII.
The person on the 49ers’ coaching staff who has spent more time with Purdy than anyone else has no doubt that the extra attention that comes with this game will have no effect on the second-year quarterback.
Purdy handled that Super Bowl experience with aplomb. And that’s not much of a surprise.
“It’s a big stage,” 49ers quarterbacks coach Brian Gris said. “I have no question about handling all of this. When he came in as a rookie, I had those questions: ‘How is he going to handle the media?’
“And, honestly, I watched the first press conference and I was like, ‘I don’t need to tell this kid anything.’ He was more mature than I was when I came in as a player.”
The 24-year-old Purdy has added plenty of experience in his short NFL career to draw on.
As a two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback, there can be extra pressure on a young quarterback playing in the biggest game of the year.
The Chiefs are making their fourth Super Bowl appearance in five seasons with Patrick Mahomes at the helm.
But Grice looks back at Purdy’s debut and wonders how the assignment could have been more difficult than playing against a team that contained one of the greatest players in the history of the sport.
“Who did Brock beat the first game he started?” Griese asked.
The answer, of course, was Tom Brady.
First start of your entire NFL career, right? I guarantee the game felt like the Super Bowl to Brock Purdy,” Griese said.
Purdy threw for two touchdowns and rushed for a score in the 49ers’ 35-7 win over Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 14.
The only start he missed after that game was when the 49ers landed several of their best players in the season-ending No. 1 seed.
Purdy was up and down in the 49ers’ two playoff wins, but ultimately led the team to wins over Green Bay and Detroit in the final game of the NFL season.
Of course, the two-week build-up to the Super Bowl and all the extra media attention will make this game unlike any other.
“Everybody has nerves, and what happens when you go out there in that moment?” Griese said. “I’m thankful he’s had the playoff experience he’s had now – the pressure of the last two weeks.
“What happened in Baltimore, I’m glad it happened. There will be nerves, and that should be managed. There is no question about it. But once we get past that, I have no question that he will settle down and play football.
Purdy has played a handful of balls this season. He was selected as an NFL rookie in the Pro Bowl and is one of five finalists for the NFL’s Most Valuable Player award.
“Everybody knows that the game is not just any other game, but when you take all the media off the field, stop playing the national anthem and blow the whistle, it’s a game,” he said. “This is the game you know, the game you love and want to play as a kid. As soon as he can get in there, he’ll be better.”
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