According to ESPN, Kyle Shanahan attempted to talk seven-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady out of retirement before the 2023 season began by making him the starting quarterback.
As a franchise quarterback, Brock Purdy has shown his worth, as he recently led the 49ers to the NFC Championship Game. Shanahan could have jeopardized everything, though, if he had benched Brady in favor of the 46-year-old and brought him out of retirement.
That’s what Purdy himself claims.
“Early in the offseason, Niners coach Kyle Shanahan sat down with Purdy and assured him that if he was healthy he would be the starter unless Brady wanted to play one more season for his hometown Niners,” ESPN reported ahead of Saturday’s Divisional Round game between the Niners and Packers.
“An ecstatic Purdy understood the logic, but the competitor in him also bubbled under the surface. “That meant so much to me,” Purdy said. “I remember him saying, if we can get Tom Brady, we’re going to try to get him. And I was like, ‘Yeah, he’s the GOAT. I get it.’ But something deep down inside me was sort of like, ‘Dude, I just showed you that I can play well in this system. And we were one game away from the Super Bowl.’ … More than anything, I was like, ‘OK, now let’s go.’”
BREAKING: #49ers HC Kyle Shanahan HEAVILY ATTEMPTED to get 46-year-old Tom Brady out of retirement this offseason, per ESPN.
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The plan was for Brock Purdy to ride the bench, Kyle told him. pic.twitter.com/pU53bZ1eWw
— MLFootball (@MLFootball) January 21, 2024
He preferred Jimmy Garoppolo above Brady in 2020 because he believed the latter was past his prime. However, he made an attempt to get Purdy now that he’s truly over it, which might have hampered Purdy’s development.
Thankfully for all parties concerned, Brady declined.
