Who is 49ers starting QB today vs. Tom Brady's Buccaneers?

Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will be out west in their Week 14 matchup as they face the San Francisco 49ers. As Brady will be under center for the Buccaneers, the question is, who'll be starting for the 49ers in the game?

The answer is Brock Purdy, who was the final pick in this year's NFL Draft (aka Mr. Irrelevant). Purdy has played in four games this season, throwing for 276 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions.

Purdy was a four-year starter at Iowa State University, where he threw for 3,188 yards, 19 touchdowns, and eight interceptions in his senior season. In that senior season, Purdy had a 71.7 completion percentage, which was the fourth-best in college football. He's Iowa State's all-time leader in career passing yards (12,170 yards) and touchdowns (81).

Purdy will become the first Iowa State alum to start at quarterback in an NFL game since Seneca Wallace. Wallace started one game for the Green Bay Packers in the 2013 -2014 season. He'll now face the greatest quarterback in NFL history in his first NFL start in Tom Brady.

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Why is Brock Purdy starting for the 49ers versus Tom Brady's Buccaneers?

Brock Purdy is under center for the 49ers against the Buccaneers because Jimmy Garoppolo suffered an injury. Garoppolo broke his left foot in Week 13's game versus the Miami Dolphins. According to 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan, the timeline for Garoppolo's injury is a seven- or eight-week recovery timeline.

Shanahan also noted that's the timeframe it's projected to take for him to recover, not exactly when he'll be ready to play.

Shanahan said:

"It will be a big recovery but much less than what we anticipated, which is awesome news for him in the offseason. There's a way outside chance late in the playoffs or something like that, but it's just an outside chance. We're not real optimistic about that, but they didn't rule it out."

Given the timeline, it lines up for Garoppolo to be ready come playoff time should the 49ers still be alive. The good news for the 49ers is that he won't need surgery on that broken foot.

For now, Purdy looks to be the starting quarterback for the remainder of the season. We'll see how he fares against Tom Brady and the Buccaneers at Levi's Stadium.

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