Former NFL star Cam Newton could have easily taken a victory lap after Brock Purdy and the San Francisco 49ers came up short at Super Bowl LVIII. Instead, Newton surprisingly came to Purdy’s defense.
Newton had previously gone on record to point out Purdy’s limitations as a quarterback well before this season’s Super Bowl victor was decided last week at Allegiant Stadium.
The former NFL MVP is the reason why the term “game manager” has been used to describe Purdy this season with debates raging about how much of his success was thanks to Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan.
Cam Newton Vocal On Who To Blame For San Francisco 49ers’ Super Bowl LVIII Loss
Dozens of varying factors aside, the fact is that Purdy wasn’t able to deliver a dagger play late. That left the door open for Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs to steal the Super Bowl from the 49ers for the second time in five years.
But on a recent episode of Newton’s “4th and 1” show, Newton shielded Purdy of any blame. One fan asked Newton to dissect Purdy’s drive in OT that resulted in a field goal rather than a touchdown. The former Heisman winner took what appeared to be low-hanging fruit and hurled it the other direction.
“Brock Purdy did not have a bad game,” said Newton. “To that point, field goal vs. touchdown, that’s not Brock Purdy. Why the f–k did [the 49ers] receive the ball first. The 49ers, they were just trying to get points. And that isn’t Brock Purdy’s fault. That’s bad coaching.”
"It's not Brock Purdy's fault. He played well enough for his team to win."@CameronNewton thinks the 49ers coaching staff let them down, not Purdy. pic.twitter.com/dQrspNrjVD
— 4thand1show (@4thand1show) February 16, 2024
Cam Newton Laid Down Why Brock Purdy Was Not At Fault
Newton blamed the coaching staff for their controversial decision to receive the ball first in overtime rather than to kick. Newton echoed Super Bowl commentator Tony Romo’s stance that kicking first would have allowed the Niners to have a keen understanding of how many points they need to score, and therefore make more informed decisions when on offense.
Newton also pointed out how several 49ers have basically admitted to not being knowledgeable enough on the revised OT rules as compared to the Chiefs.
In Newton’s eyes, Purdy had done more than enough to win the Super Bowl and made big plays down the stretch. Cam still didn’t call Brock a “game-changer” instead of a “game manager” but it’s a start.