The 49ers were left in unfamiliar territory Sunday, falling 19-17 on the road to the Cleveland Browns for their first regular-season loss in 357 days.
Brock Purdy had what was by far his worst game as a starter in the NFL, which left many pundits casting doubt about the young quarterback's ability to overcome extreme adversity.
However, FS1's Colin Cowherd was not one of them.
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"I thought the San Francisco loss was about as good [of] a loss as the NFL has," Cowherd said Monday morning on his radio show "The Herd."
Cowherd was particularly impressed with Purdy's ability to rebound and put his team in a position to win against a defense that has allowed the fewest yards through five games since 1971.
"That game had unraveled written all over it for Brock Purdy, and he didn't, Cowherd said. "He wasn't great because he's not great, he's good, and that's what I keep seeing. He's not even very good; we don't know that. He's good, and that is what Kirk Cousins is, and has won playoff games and the division."
"If [Tom] Brady, on the final drive, without [Rob Gronkowski] and [Julian] Edelman, [had] driven it down the field in crummy weather, and his field goal kicker missed a 41-yarder, you'd blame the kicker," Cowherd said. "41-yard kicks the last decade, 81 percent go through. I watch quarterbacks, especially young quarterbacks, unravel every Sunday. And they unravel for the same reasons. Their O-line can't block, San Francisco's couldn't. They're missing their stars, [Christian] McCaffrey and Deebo [Samuel] gone. The defense they are facing is better than average. They get a call or two going against them."
San Francisco 49ers
Despite the mounting challenges as the game progressed, Purdy did what would be asked of any quarterback on the final drive, putting his team in position to win the game on a relatively routine field goal attempt based on the success rate from that distance.
Purdy threw for 42 yards on 3-of-6 passing on that drive, leading the 49ers well into field-goal range with plenty of time to spare.
Cowherd argued that effort shouldn't go unnoticed, citing that was the kind of drive you would typically expect from a quarterback that viewed among the league's elite.
"You tell me, outside of an [Josh] Allen, or a [Patrick] Mahomes, or a [Joe] Burrow, or a Lamar [Jackson, who's going on the road against the best statistical defense since '71," Cowherd explained. [You] don't have two of your top three stars, off an emotional win, two calls, bad ones go against you, and your O-line cannot block Cleveland, and you had three dropped passes."
Even though the missed field-goal attempt erased any chance for a 49ers victory, Cowherd still came away from that final drive feeling better about Purdy than he did before it started.
"My wife says this all the time; it's not about being right or wrong," Cowherd said. "You're either right, or you're learning. And I thought yesterday I learned a lot about Brock Purdy."
Every week in the NFL presents a new opportunity to learn and grow, and based on the sample size we have seen from Purdy, it's a fair bet to expect he will rebound convincingly next Monday night against the Minnesota Vikings.