The San Francisco 49ers and quarterback Brock Purdy are in the middle of negotiations for a contract extension, and it should be a no-brainer for the organization to make him the next highest-paid quarterback.
Brock Purdy Should Reset Quarterback Market
Brock Purdy is entering his fourth season and final year of his rookie contract in 2025. The San Francisco 49ers and Purdy’s team have been negotiating an extension to keep Purdy as the team’s starting quarterback for years to come. Still, there has been debate about how much Purdy should make, whether in the media, from NFL executives, or from people in the Niners organization. Recent reports from NFL insiders suggest that extension talks have ranged from $45 million to $50 million a year, none of which are top of the market numbers. However, Purdy has a case to demand top dollar and to be the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL.
The reason for the wide-ranging numbers on what a Purdy extension would look like is that most who are against giving Purdy top dollar are adamant of Purdy not being among the top quarterbacks in the NFL. Many believe that The Niners, who have multiple Pro-Bowlers on its roster and one of the top offensive coaches in the NFL, are a well-oiled machine that doesn’t require heavy lifting from the quarterback position to be successful. In the past, the Niners have had league-leading offenses from quarterbacks such as Jimmy Garoppolo. So Is Purdy really worth a top of the market deal of the the Niners could essentially get any quarterback in their system to run it efficiently.
The 49ers have been committed to working on a deal for Purdy, and recent comments by 49ers CEO Jed York suggest that they believe they have a top ten quarterback on their hands even though York made it a point to add the disclaimer that Purdy, with his coach Kyle Shanahan, makes him a top ten quarterback.
“We want to make sure Brock is a long-term partner, and he’s a part of our team for a long time,” York told the media. “He has been great on the field and off the field for us. We’ve been waiting to get something done with him for a while, but because of the collective bargaining agreement, we’ve had to wait until. We don’t think we are far apart on an extension, but it’s ultimately up to him as well. When he’s ready to sign, we’ll be ready.”
Purdy, the last pick of the 2022 draft, has far exceeded expectations and has been one of the biggest underdog stories in NFL history. In his first year as a starter, he led SF to the NFC Championship game and followed that season up by helping lead the team to a Super Bowl appearance in 2023. He was selected to the Pro-Bowl and finished top-five in NFL MVP voting in 2023. In 2024, the team took a step back after dealing with injuries. Purdy’s individual 2024 season wasn’t as good as his first two seasons, but it was still solid. Since the day he was drafted, Purdy has been one of the best contract values in the entire league.
Since his first start in the NFL, Purdy has ranked first in yards per attempt and second in passer rating. He is third in passing yards with 9,242. The 49ers rank sixth in the league in wins with 23, and Purdy has been sixth in completion percentage and seventh in touchdown passes since his first start.
The current highest-paid quarterback contract average
Dak Prescott, $60 million
Joe Burrow, $55 million
Jordan Love, $55 million
Josh Allen, $55 million
Trevor Lawrence, $55 million
Tua Tagovailoa, $53 million
Jared Goff, $53 million
Justin Herbert, $52.5 milion
Lamar Jackson, $52 million
The top of the quarterback market always looks different from year to year. The highest paid each year does not necessarily mean the best player; it is just the player who is next in line. A lot of the time, players at the top of the quarterback market earn lofty deals simply because they are next in line to be extended. Prescott is currently the leader in annual value per year for quarterbacks at $60 million.
Purdy has arguably accomplished more on an individual and team basis than Prescott, and that should warrant him a top-of-the-market deal. Purdy has also accomplished more than players such as Justin Herbert, Jordan Love, Trevor Lawrence and Tua Tagovailoa, who also signed top-of-the-market deals. Talks should start at $56 million for Purdy and his camp.
What a projected contract for Brock Purdy would look like
Prescott signed a four-year contract for $240 million, with $231 million guaranteed. Purdy’s deal could be a four-year deal for $244 million, with $232 million guaranteed. With the new contract, Purdy would beat Prescott’s contract in annual value by one million and would surpass his guarantees by one million as well. He would also been far ahead of Tagovailoa, Love, Herbert and Lawrence.
The Niners and Purdy could also agree to a short-term deal. He could sign a two-year extension for $122 million, fully guaranteed. He would still have the highest annual value at $61 million a year. A short deal would lock him up for three seasons, including the 2025 season, and it would give Purdy a chance to cash in again very soon when salaries would be even higher due to the continuously rising salary cap.
With the NFL salary cap going up each year, Purdy’s deal won’t look as hefty as each year passes.
Main Image: © Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images
