Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule revealed Wednesday he was shot down when he suggested putting Brock Purdy on the Panthers’ draft board in 2022 when he was still their head coach.
Purdy, taken last in that draft by the 49ers, has gone on to help lead San Francisco to Super Bowl 2024 when the team takes on the Chiefs this Sunday in Las Vegas.
But Rhule, now at Nebraska, said Purdy caught his eye when the signal-caller was still in college.
“I think Brock Purdy is an amazing player cause I played against him when he was at Iowa State and I was in the draft room at Carolina, I brought his name up,” Rhule said. “I said, ‘Hey guys he should be on the draft board.’ I got vetoed on that one, but we used to tell guys when we used to play Brock Purdy, ‘Do not fall for his pump fake.’
“Because Brock would come out and he’d pump fake. First game, he’s 10 yards down the field, he pump fakes. Our DBs are jumping and I’m like he’s past the line scrimmage, so a lot of respect for Brock.”
It would’ve been interesting to see what Purdy would have ended up doing had he been drafted by the Panthers, but in the end, the 49ers picked him with the No. 262 pick.
The Panthers did take one quarterback in that draft, picking Matt Corral in the third round.
Corral was released in 2023 without playing in a game.
Rhule lasted five games into the 2022 season before he was fired after the Panthers started 1-4.
On the flip side, Purdy led the Niners to a 12-5 record this year and is a finalist for the MVP award.
He threw 4,280 passing yards and 31 touchdowns and led the league with a 113.0 passer rating.
