Commanders' Taylor Heinicke 'Rooting For' 49ers QB Brock Purdy

After seemingly being afterthoughts, Taylor Heinicke and Brock Purdy are in the thick of the NFC playoff race for the Washington Commanders and San Francisco 49ers.

When the San Francisco 49ers host the Washington Commanders this weekend, it’ll be more than just a matchup of teams currently in the NFC playoff race.

It’ll feature two quarterbacks whose unlikely paths have thrown them into the spotlight.

Taylor Heinicke was an undrafted quarterback who played at Old Dominion and bounced between the Minnesota Vikings, Houston Texans, Carolina Panthers and XFL’s St. Louis Battlehawks as a backup before finding his way to the Washington Commanders. Brock Purdy played for four years at Iowa State before he was the last pick of the 2022 draft by San Francisco and dubbed “Mr. Irrelevant.”

Both quarterbacks elevated their teams this season after seemingly being afterthoughts when they first entered the NFL. Their tumultuous paths have led to Heinicke voicing his support for Purdy, though that’ll be on hold for this week.

“Not this game, but when I watch him, I'm rooting for him,” Heinicke said. “The guy is Mr. Irrelevant. He's a shorter quarterback, (and) a lot of guys didn't give him a chance being the last pick in the draft. So I kind of feel that similarity toward him, but he's doing a great job.”

Purdy was thrown into action on Dec. 4 when Jimmy Garoppolo went down in the first quarter with a foot injury against the Miami Dolphins. Purdy completed 25 of his 37 passes for 210 yards and a touchdown in a 33-17 win over Miami. Purdy has thrown two touchdowns in each of his two starts and helped lead San Francisco to clinch the NFC on Thursday with a 21-13 win over the Seattle Seahawks.

Heinicke has dug Washington out of a 1-4 start to the season by going 5-2-1. In his eight starts, Heinicke has thrown for 1,693 yards and 10 touchdowns compared to five interceptions.

Washington is currently the seventh seed in the NFC, though their chances of making the playoffs are much slimmer compared to a week ago. A loss to the 49ers would force the Commanders to need the New York Giants or Detroit Lions to falter down the stretch of the final three games.

"If someone told us at the beginning of the year, 'Hey, you have three games left, and you control your own destiny,' we would take it all day," Heinicke said. "We control our own destiny, and that's all we can ask for."

Heinicke's Commanders visit Purdy's 49ers Saturday at Levi's Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:05 p.m.

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