Chicago Bears 2021 Draft Scouting Report: Iowa State QB Brock Purdy

The early Chicago Bears 2021 draft look at quarterbacks moves forward. Mitch Trubisky has yet to confirm whether or not that starting job will be his beyond 2020. Odds are the team won’t have a definitive answer until at least November. Until then, the organization would be wise to keep one eye on the next offseason to know their options.

One of them could end up being Brock Purdy. The Bears should be familiar with Iowa State University. That is where they secured David Montgomery a year ago. So Purdy had to be somebody they know something about. He finished just shy of 4,000 yards with 27 touchdown passes and nine interceptions in 2019.

Is he somebody they should look into further? Let’s find out.

Chicago Bears 2021 draft look at Brock Purdy

Strengths:

• Arm strength isn’t an issue. Shows the ability to attack at all levels with good velocity.
• Release and arm motion are tight and compact, allowing him to get the ball out fast when required.
• Accuracy can be impressive. Shows an ability to fit the ball into tight windows and lead his receivers on their routes.
• Mobility stands out consistently. He can take off and run with ease. Not just to extend plays but also pick up 1st downs.
• Gutty and poised. Never feels like he’s out of a game and will keep fighting until he wins or time runs out.

This play demonstrates everything exciting about Purdy.

There are less than five minutes to go in the game. His team trails by two touchdowns. They badly need a big play. He uses his mobility on a rollout to buy time and survey down the field. A defender gets a clean look and comes in for the hit. Right before contact, Purdy is able to unload the ball on the run and hit his receiver in the hands between two defenders. That is a big-time throw.

• Looks comfortable from inside the pocket. Won’t look to run too soon and has a pass-first mentality.
• A lot of his “incompletions” were flat drops by his receivers. This makes his stats a little misleading.
• Will throw in the face of a blitz and manages to keep his accuracy most of the time in those situations.
• Toughness isn’t an issue. Between his running and being under pressure a lot, he handles the physicality of football well.

Weaknesses:

• Size will be a question mark for him. At 6’1 he is under the preferred bar teams look for at QB.
• Not a full field reader. Usually required to go to his first read and then move around if it’s not there.
• Bit of a gunslinger mentality. Can sometimes get reckless in his decision-making, leading to throws that would be intercepted in the NFL.
• Also has a bad habit of fading backward when he’s under pressure. This can lead to more interceptable balls as well.
• Footwork will require some polishing. Gets a bit lazy with it, leading to some erratic ball placement.

Comparison: Johnny Manziel (without the baggage)

While not the pure talented scrambler that Manziel was at Texas A&M, the dimensions are almost exactly the same. Purdy has a similar build, similar throwing motion, and similar arm strength. He’s also not afraid to turn it loose and take chances. People never got to see Manziel thrive in the NFL because he had so many issues off the field. That won’t be a problem with Purdy who appears squeaky clean in that department.

Projection: 2nd round

Purdy won’t have the same outlandish hype Manziel did in college. That is why he’ll likely be a Day 2 pick. His size and lack of playing at a top program will scare some teams away from taking a risk on him in the 1st round. That said, his skill set is more than capable of being a starter at the NFL. He won’t fit every offensive system but if a team builds one similar to the one Arizona has for Kyler Murray? Purdy will have success.