Brock Purdy is ‘Mr Irrelevant’ no more.
The San Francisco 49ers quarterback was not supposed to get any meaningful playing time this year, stuck behind Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo.
But with both struck down by injury, the 49ers turned to Purdy, the rookie taken with the 262nd and final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft.
It immediately had plenty of people putting a line through the 49ers as genuine Super Bowl contenders but San Francisco just made a big statement.
With it, Purdy became the first quarterback to beat Brady while making his first career NFL start.
Meanwhile, Brady suffered his seventh regular-season loss for the first time in 20 years and is looking at potentially losing eight for the first time in his career as a starter.
It got so bad that FOX cut away from the game to instead broadcast the Panthers vs Seahawks in some parts of the country.
Running back Christian McCaffrey also played a starring role in the victory, rushing 14 times for 119 yards and a touchdown along with a 27-yard score through the air.
In worrying scenes for the 49ers they did lose Deebo Samuel to a reported ankle injury, with the wide receiver emotional as he was carted off the field.
It looked like a potential season-ending injury for Samuel but immediate reports suggest it may not be serious, with further scans to determined the full extent of the injury.
As for the Bucs, they still sit atop of the NFC South, although really that is no real achievement at this stage given how dour that division is.
The Carolina Panthers also won their second-straight game earlier, 30-24 over the Seattle Seahawks, to move alongside the Atlana Falcons with a 5-8 record and just one game back from the Bucs.
Brady completed 34 of 55 passes in the loss for 256 yards with one touchdown throw to Russell Gage, although he also threw two interceptions in the defeat.
The 49ers, meanwhile, extended their lead on top of the NFC West and now have a 9-4 record, two games ahead of the Seahawks.
AUSSIE’S INJURY BLOW AS EAGLES STAR BUILDS MVP CASE
Jalen Hurts threw for two touchdowns and ran for another as the Philadelphia Eagles beat the New York Giants 48-22 and became the NFL’s first playoff qualifier.
Miles Sanders ran 17 times for 144 yards and two touchdowns while Hurts completed 21-of-31 passes for 217 yards and ran seven times for 77 yards.
It was bad news for Australian punter Arryn Siposs though, who was in a boot and on crutches post-game after suffering an ankle injury earlier in the game scrambling to save a blocked punt and nearly getting a first down.
The Eagles improved to an NFL-best 12-1 to secure their fifth playoff bid in six seasons but their goal is a championship, not just a playoff spot.
“We’re trying to stay focused,” Hurts said.
“The reality is we’re never satisfied so I think there is more out there for us to do.”
Hurts, who threw touchdown tosses of 41 yards to DeVonta Smith and 33 yards to A.J. Brown and ran 10 yards for another touchdown, has stressed consistency and improvement for a team that won the 2018 Super Bowl and started 8-0 for the first time in club history.
“You just never want to ride waves. You never want to get too high or too low,” Hurts said. “The main thing is to keep going. Nothing else matters but chasing that growth every day.” “We just want to continue to taste progress. We want to continue to learn from our mistakes, learn from our successes and keep continuing to grow.” Sanders scored on runs of 40 and three yards.
“He’s a big-time asset,” Hurts said.
“He worked really hard this off-season and has taken advantage of the opportunities he has had so I’m really proud of him.”
The Eagles stretched their lead for the NFC top seed, and a first-round bye plus home-field advantage in the playoffs, as Minnesota fell to 10-3 with a 34-23 loss at Detroit.
Jared Goff threw for 330 yards and three touchdowns as the Lions improved to 6-7 at the Vikings’ expense.
COWBOYS AVOID HUMILIATING LOSS, RAVENS STAR MAKES EPIC RETURN
Elsewhere, The Dallas Cowboys (10-3) barely avoided an upset home loss before defeating Houston 27-23. Ezekiel Elliott’s 2-yard touchdown run in the final seconds capped a 98-yard Dallas drive to victory.
Buffalo kept the top spot in the AFC with a 20-12 home victory over the New York Giants as Josh Allen threw for 147 yards and ran for 47 more, delivering a 24-yard touchdown pass to Dawson Knox and running five yards for another touchdown to spark the Bills (10-3).
The Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals remained deadlocked atop the AFC North division after each club won to reach 9-4.
J.K. Dobbins ran for 120 yards and a touchdown and Justin Tucker kicked three field goals to became Baltimore’s all-time scoring leading in a 16-14 victory at Pittsburgh.
The Ravens, already without Lamar Jackson due to a knee injury, lost another starting quarterback as Tyler Huntley was slammed into the turf in the third quarter and put into concussion protocols. Baltimore finished behind rookie Anthony Brown.
Joe Burrow threw for 239 yards and two touchdowns while Joe Mixon ran for 96 yards and another score to spark the Bengals to a 23-10 home triumph over Cleveland.
Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence threw for 368 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another touchdown as the Jaguars won 36-22 at Tennessee, trimming the 7-6 Titans’ AFC South division lead over them to two games.
WEEK 14: NFL SCORES
Rams 17 Raiders 16
Lions 34 Vikings 23
Steelers 14 Ravens 16
Bengals 23 Browns 10
Bills 20 Jets 12
Cowboys 27 Texans 23
Giants 22 Eagles 48
Titans 22 Jaguars 36
Broncos 28 Chiefs 34
Seahawks 24 Panthers 30
49ers 35 Buccaneers 7
