DEAL:Brock Purdy may leave San Francisco 49ers to….

Brock Purdy: “He’s the GOAT,” the 49ers wanted Tom Brady before he retired. I Understand.
Although Brock Purdy of the San Francisco 49ers is a strong candidate to win MVP of the Super Bowl this year, in other situations he might not have been the team’s starting quarterback at all.

According to ESPN’s Nick Wagoner, head coach Kyle Shanahan informed Purdy last offseason that he would start in 2023 unless the organization could convince veteran quarterback Tom Brady to play his final NFL season in San Francisco.

He is the greatest of all time, I thought. I understand,” Purdy reportedly remarked to Wagoner. However, I secretly felt as though I had just proved to you, dude, that I could function well in this system. Additionally, we were one game away from the Super Bowl.’ … More than anything, I was like, ‘OK, now let’s go.'”

In lieu of an injured Jimmy Garoppolo, Purdy took over and guided the Niners into the 2022 postseason, winning all five of the regular season’s final games to secure a 5-0 record. After that, San Francisco advanced all the way to the NFC Championship before falling to the Philadelphia Eagles 31-17.

Tom Brady was a 49ers fan growing up in San Mateo, which is 20 minutes away from San Francisco. Before Brady was chosen in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL draft, the Niners were among the thirty NFL clubs who passed on him.

In December, Brady remarked on his podcast that he had “a chip on my shoulder for a long time” as a result of his youth team’s rejection.

Perhaps for that reason, Brady chose to stick with his February retirement rather than accept Shanahan’s offer.

Ultimately, the 49ers appear to have found success by remaining loyal to Purdy. After defeating the Green Bay Packers in the divisional round on Saturday, when Purdy tallied 252 passing yards for one touchdown and no interceptions, San Francisco is poised for its second lengthy postseason run in as many seasons.