J.J. McCarthy Gets Brock Purdy, Garoppolo Comps, 'Game Manager' Label by NFL Insider

Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy was compared to Jimmy Garoppolo and Brock Purdy by a scout as his draft stock continues to climb, per Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports.

The scout believes that McCarthy executed Michigan's offense en route to the 2024 CFP National Championship in a similar way to how Garoppolo and Purdy led the San Francisco 49ers to two Super Bowls, Robinson reported.

"McCarthy definitely fits that kind of game manager profile of Brock and Jimmy," the scout told Robinson. "Who knows? Everyone has their own set of things they like in a quarterback, so really anything can happen."

Both Garoppolo and Purdy played for the 49ers while Washington Commanders general manager Adam Peters was in the team's front office.

There are rumors that Peters is considering using the No. 2 pick of the 2024 draft to select Peters, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported.

McCarthy is ranked as the No. 54 overall prospect and No. 4 quarterback in the latest B/R NFL Scouting Department Big Board.

Most mock drafts rank North Carolina's Drake Maye and LSU's Jayden Daniels above McCarthy, with USC's Caleb Williams the consensus No. 1 pick by the Chicago Bears.

McCarthy's draft stock has risen in part because of his developing reputation as a playmaker and in part due to praise from Los Angeles Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh, who left Michigan for the NFL after leading the team to the national title in January.

"I think he plays quarterback the best of any quarterback in the draft," Harbaugh said about McCarthy Monday during the NFL's annual league meeting, per ESPN's Kris Rhim.

Although McCarthy made 713 pass attempts in his collegiate career, offering scouts a smaller sample size than other projected top picks like Williams, Maye and Daniels, he also finished his Michigan career with a dominant 27-1 record and reportedly made a good impression on scouts during Michigan's March 22 Pro Day.

Harbaugh described McCarthy's Pro Day as "the best throwing day I've ever seen."

"Like I predicted, once they were around him, I was hearing the stories about how he is on the board, how he is on the field, the little things, the intangibles," Harbaugh said. "I mean, it was absolutely no surprise whatsoever. But yeah, there was raving, and it was great to hear and incredible to hear."

Robinson noted that multiple scouts believe Harbaugh has a personal motivation to move his former quarterback up draft boards.

The Chargers, which hold the No. 5 pick in the draft, are in need of a wide receiver or offensive lineman, so it could benefit Harbaugh if the teams selecting before Los Angeles choose quarterbacks.

Despite Harbaugh's apparent motivation to improve McCarthy's draft stock, no scouts explicitly pointed to the Chargers coach as the source behind the rumors of the Commanders' interest in McCarthy, Robinson reported.