ESPN's Dan Orlovsky released his latest rankings of NFL quarterbacks by trait, and San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy ranked among the league's best in three of the seven categories.

Unsurprisingly, Purdy didn't crack the top 10 in traits such as arm strength, but he ranked No. 9 in ball placement, No. 8 in pocket presence, and No. 7 in second-reaction ability.


"Purdy displays incredible touch, layering the ball in," Orlovsky wrote while discussing Purdy's ball placement. "His 10.7% off-target rate was fourth-best in the NFL last season."

When evaluating pocket presence, Orlovsky highlighted Purdy's ability to operate from "muddy pockets," a skill that allows quarterbacks to remain effective when pressure begins to collapse the pocket.

Purdy isn't typically viewed as a highly mobile quarterback, but anyone who has watched the 49ers quarterback closely knows he is athletic enough to make plays when things break down around him. Orlovsky noted that Purdy ranks among the NFL's best in QBR (79.1) on throws made from outside the pocket, highlighting his effectiveness when forced to improvise.

Purdy is entering his fifth NFL season with a career passer rating of 104.0. If he maintains that level of efficiency, he is just 147 pass attempts away from becoming officially eligible to rank first all time in career passer rating, which would put him ahead of Aaron Rodgers (102.2) and Lamar Jackson (102.2).

The 49ers selected Purdy with the final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft. Over his first four NFL seasons, he has passed for 11,685 yards with 84 touchdowns and 37 interceptions.

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