The San Francisco 49ers finished the 2022 regular season on a 10-game winning streak, despite losing their top two quarterbacks to injury.
That’s because Brock Purdy, the last pick in the 2022 NFL draft, has delivered one of the most unlikely and incredible rookie seasons we’ve seen from a quarterback in . . . well, maybe ever.
Things like that tend to have an impact on the rest of the league, as they look to see how they might be able to find a hidden gem at the game’s most important position.
Enter Georgia’s Stetson Bennett.
While social media cracks their jokes about the Bulldogs’ former-walk-on signal-caller and his future in selling insurance, all he’s done is lead the most dominant team in college football to back-to-back undefeated seasons.
As I write this, Bennett and the Bulldogs are leading TCU 38-7 at halftime of the national title game. Bennett has two touchdowns through the air, two on the ground, and 252 yards of total offense in two quarters. Barring a meltdown of historic proportions, they’re going to win the national championship for the second year in a row.
Purdy nearly fell out of the draft because of his lack of high-end physical traits, but his track record of success at Iowa State gave plenty of indications that he knew how to get the job done behind center. He’s undersized, he doesn’t have the biggest arm, he’s more athletic than he’s given credit for, and he knows how to distribute the ball to his playmakers and make the most of his supporting cast.
Sounds a lot like Bennett, who hasn’t gotten much love of predraft projections over the last two years, despite his success. He’s a late-round prospect at best on most early rankings lists, with many not viewing him as even a draftable prospect at all.
After watching Purdy lead the 49ers to an NFC West title and a playoff berth as a rookie third-stringer thrust into the spotlight, maybe the rest of the league will think twice about letting a guy like Bennett fall all the way to the bottom of the draft.
