After another sterling performance to push his 49ers to 5-0, San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy is not only getting some MVP buzz but also generating some not-so-quiet media beef as a result.
Now, local outlets like SF Gate and national pundits including the great Peter King of NBC Sports are united in their disdain for NFL analyst Steven Ruiz and his QB Rankings at The Ringer.
The rankings feature deep-dive analysis on each quarterback in the NFL and of course a top-to-bottom ranking of each one. Purdy began the season at No. 32 according to Steven Ruiz, and now sits at just No. 25.
That’s behind the likes of Mac Jones, Daniel Jones, Deshaun Watson and Ryan Tannehill.
SF Gate mocked Ruiz after Week Four, pointing out that Ruiz had called Purdy “mediocre” and purely a “distributor” despite his success across the past two seasons.
And for his weekly Sunday night column, King went so far as to ask Purdy directly about the significant doubt still out there about him, including from Ruiz.
“When I told him lots of people still were skeptical of him, Purdy smiled and said, ‘It’s all good,'” King wrote.
“That’s a good thing: He realizes no one in his building cares that The Ringer thinks he’s a below-mediocre quarterback. And that’s all that matters to him. A football player who doesn’t listen to the outside noise. How refreshing.”
Maybe it’s a W for Ruiz after all. His takes got to the big stage where a writer like King is hashing them out and Purdy himself is responding to them.
Regardless, The Ringer is catching some heat for perceived stubbornness on this one. Maybe Ruiz will finally change his tune as the 49ers march toward a potential undefeated season, or he will be the lone holdout on the former Mr. Irrelevant.
[The Ringer, SF Gate, NBC Sports]
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.