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He was told by coaches late Friday that his first time on the sidelines with the team would be a trip to Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
"It kind of caught me off guard," Purvis said. "But it was really special. I got to see my family, and my first time on an NFL sideline was 'in my own hometown.' So it's something I will never forget."
Although being in Philadelphia was special for Purvis, just having the opportunity to be a part of an NFL team is something that he relishes, especially considering that after the NFL draft in April he was unsure of his future.
"My agent and I had planned out a worst-case scenario entering the draft, and what happened was worse than that," Purvis said. "I didn't even get a contract offered when the draft was over; I wasn't a priority free agent and had to accept a contract as a tryout player with Philly. It was disappointing because I thought I had a better résumé than that in college."
Purvis may have been discouraged after the draft, but it put a chip on his shoulder to play harder if he got the opportunity. He also got some great advice this spring from another Lancaster native playing in the NFL, Dan Kreider. The 11-year veteran, now with the Cardinals, was basically in the same situation as Purvis coming out of college with the Steelers.
"We worked out in Lancaster together, and when I was going through that whole thing of working out for teams before minicamps, he was giving me advice and telling me about his journey through the league," Purvis said. "He told me how he was on the practice squad the first seven weeks, then got activated and never looked back. So you've got to embrace being on the practice squad and get ready."
The Buccaneers have Kellen Winslow, who had nine catches against the Eagles, entrenched as the starter at the tight end position. They also have Jeremy Stephens and former Wilson standout John Gilmore. But Tampa was a good fit for Purvis. He had a familiarity with the scheme since many of his former coaches from Boston College are with the team.
Despite the familiarity with the playbook and some of the coaches, admittedly he was nervous when he went into his first meetings with the team.
"At first it is intimidating when you walk into a room, all those guys are veterans and our tight end coach Alfredo Roberts played in the NFL," Purvis said. "But really to their credit, they have gone out of their way to help me grow as a player. They all do different things in preparation and it can only benefit me down the road."
There is a misconception about being part of an NFL practice squad. Players do not sit around waiting for someone to go down with injury. Instead, they take an active role in helping prep for the upcoming opponent and are as involved as a member of the 53-man roster.
"By no stretch do you feel like you are a distant member of the team," Purvis said. "The eight-man practice squad is just an extension of the regular roster, and it is challenging. You have to stay mentally in tune to what everyone is doing and what the team is trying to accomplish."
On the flip side Purvis says there is a positive, too. While you don't get many reps preparing for the game, you do face the first-team defense as one of the opponents on a consistent basis.
"Practice is intense, everything is on tape, and I've learned in the NFL once you are on tape, that is your resume," he said. "Everyone is going full speed building that resume on tape, so when the cameras are on, you have to be ready."
Asked if playing in the NFL was a dream of his when he was back at Catholic High, Purvis laughed.
"To be honest with you, I didn't even think I would be playing college football," he said. "We weren't very good back then. I think our best record was 5-5 or 6-4; it wasn't very good so I didn't think I'd get noticed by a recruiter."
But he also isn't taking things for granted now that he is an injury away from suiting up on Sundays.
"I think a pretty telling tale is you hear it all the time, even when I was at BC, is that the average NFL career is something like 2.3 years," Purvis said. "In three years I'm only 26, so there is no way I'm going to make enough money to last the rest of my life. So when you look at it that way, it was a pretty simple choice. I went to BC to get my degree, I went there to get a good degree and to make sure I had an opportunity to get a good job after football is over."
