Baker Mayfield Comes to Brock Purdy's Defense Over 'Game Manager' Narrative

Baker Mayfield made his thoughts clear on the narrative that Brock Purdy is a game manager.

San Francisco 49ers’ quarterback Brock Purdy’s path to featuring in Sunday’s Super Bowl LVIII has been anything but ordinary, and the former last pick in the NFL draft has amassed more than his fair share of naysayers throughout the season.

After Cam Newton bluntly assessed that Purdy is nothing more than a “game manager,” a narrative has emerged that the 49ers’ quarterback is simply benefitting from playing on a loaded roster, rather than being the cause of his team’s success.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield, a former No. 1 pick, spoke with Rich Eisen of the NFL Network on Wednesday and came to Purdy’s defense regarding the title of game manager that some ascribe to him.

“If you’re executing the system to what’s being called, and what you’re being asked to do, people can slap a ‘game manager’ title on it, but you’re executing at a very high level. That’s game changing,” said Mayfield.

"If you're executing the system to what's being called... that's an elite level of quarterback play."

Asked @bakermayfield what he thinks of the media narrative surrounding @brockpurdy13:#SuperBowl #FTTB #ChiefsKingdom pic.twitter.com/PbFwD6I8UX

— Rich Eisen Show (@RichEisenShow) February 7, 2024

“If you’re able to do it consistently like Brock has done, that’s an elite level of quarterback play and you can’t ask for much else. I’m a big fan of Brock. Short little quarterbacks, we try to stick together,” he said.

Purdy was an MVP candidate for much of the season and although he doesn’t appear likely to win the award, Mayfield has certainly seen enough from the 24-year-old to say that he’s much more than a game manager.

“The guy just executes. He does it in his own way. That doesn’t mean he’s a game manager, that just means he’s executing in his own way, and you gotta do it your own way,” Mayfield said to SI.

Purdy will have the chance to erase that narrative with a strong showing in Super Bowl LVIII against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, though it’s clear not everyone around the league has bought into the belief that he’s managing games instead of winning them.