He was picked last in the 2022 draft. Now he's key to the 49ers' Super Bowl hopes

Of the four starting quarterbacks left in the NFL playoffs, three of them have gilded pedigrees: There's Kansas City's Patrick Mahomes, the phenom who has redefined the ceiling for quarterback play in the NFL. There's Joe Burrow, the Heisman-winner-turned-#1-overall-pick whose cool play and attitude has transformed Cincinnati football. And there's Jalen Hurts, the Alabama-to-Oklahoma standout whose 35 total touchdowns helped keep the Philadelphia Eagles at the top of their conference all season long.

Then there's Brock Purdy.

Nine months ago, Purdy — a middle-tier college prospect from a middle-tier program — was picked dead last in the 2022 NFL draft by the San Francisco 49ers, who had the idea that he could perhaps make a decent backup quarterback.

But since a series of injuries to other players made him the team's starting quarterback in December, the 23-year-old Purdy has won every game he's played, helping to lead the 49ers to a 12-game winning streak.

Now, as his team prepares to face the Philadelphia Eagles in this weekend's NFC Championship Game, Purdy is looking to become the first ever rookie quarterback to lead his team to the Super Bowl — and doing so as the seventh-round draft pick infamously known as "Mr. Irrelevant."

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