'Mr. Irrelevant' May Have Given NFL Its 'Story of the Year'

Brock Purdy has the unwanted label of "Mr. Irrelevant"—the nickname bestowed on the very last player picked in the NFL draft, which he was in 2022. Tom Brady, of course, has the label of GOAT, or Greatest of All Time. On Sunday, however, the 22-year-old Purdy made his first NFL start against none other than Brady, and Mr. Irrelevant routed the GOAT. The 22-year-old Purdy, picked No. 262 in the draft out of Iowa State, led the San Francisco 49ers to a 35-7 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, reports NBC Sports. After Purdy's second TD pass of the game, his father could be seen wiping tears from his eyes in the stands, per the AP.

• Purdy: "For (Brady) to just have respect for what I did today was pretty cool, I’m not going to lie," he said after the game. "Being a little kid, watching that guy kill it throughout all these years, win Super Bowls, and then to be able to just even give him a high five or whatever at the end, I thought that was pretty cool.” Purdy, in the starting role because Jimmy Garoppolo suffered a season-ending foot injury last game, threw for 185 yards and two TDs, and ran for another touchdown.
• Brady: He said Purdy played "really well," per CNN. “Threw a lot of good balls,” Brady told reporters. “Hung in there in the blitz and they did a good job, they did a really good job.”
• One view: Purdy stepping in so seamlessly is "probably the story of the year thus far across the league," says Greg Olsen of Fox Sports.
• Stakes: The 49ers are now 9-4 and all but a lock to make the playoffs. The Bucs fell to 6-7, but Brady still has a decent shot at the playoffs, too. Despite a losing record, Tampa Bay leads the NFC South.

(More Tom Brady stories.)