Brock Purdy 'Totally Understood' 49ers' Tom Brady Interest After 2023 Elbow Injury

Brock Purdy has no hard feelings toward the San Francisco 49ers when they were interested in Tom Brady last offseason.

Appearing on Audacy's The TK Show, Purdy explained to The Athletic's Tim Kawakami he "totally understood" why the 49ers considered going after Brady:

"How I took it was I understand. I was hurt, and there wasn't really a certainty as to when exactly I'd be back. Would I be back for the season? Would it be midway through the season? Who knows at that time? So, I totally understood the fact of Kyle and the team needed a quarterback for next season.

"When he said 'Tom Brady,' I'm like, 'Alright, that's cool for your sake as a head coach and for a team to bring in the best of all time.' A little bit of me was like, 'Alright, well, I'd just proven that I beat this guy this past year and that I'm good enough to take our team to, at the time, it was the NFC Championship (Game).'

"So there was a little bit to me where I was like, 'I can obviously be the guy for this organization, so why not?' But given the circumstances of me being hurt and having some certainty at quarterback, I understand why he was willing to have that as a thought. So I get it.

"I think we were just having an honest conversation about the whole thing. I think when he was bringing that up it was before surgery. It was before I even had surgery or anything, so we had no idea what my timeline was like or anything. But yeah, there was the competitive side of it for me. I was like, 'I just proved for eight, nine games that I can be the guy for this organization.' But at the same time, I get they need a guy for next year if I wasn't able to make it back in time."

Before the 49ers' first playoff game in January, ESPN's Nick Wagoner noted there was a time last year when they were "ready for one final run" at Brady if he wanted to play another season before guaranteeing Purdy the starting job.

This was the second time in three years the 49ers were connected to Brady. ESPN's Seth Wickersham reported in March 2020 that Brady wanted to join San Francisco when he was a free agent, but they decided to stick with Jimmy Garoppolo at that point.

Brady wound up retiring in February 2023, but there was still uncertainty about Purdy's readiness for the 2023 season. He had to undergo elbow surgery in March after tearing his UCL in the first quarter of the NFC Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Purdy was able to start throwing in May and he was cleared to practice without restrictions shortly before training camp began. He put to rest any questions about his ability after an excellent season that included throwing for a 49ers' franchise-record 4,280 yards and finishing fourth in MVP voting.

The 49ers earned the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs and advanced to Super Bowl 58 before losing to the Kansas City Chiefs in overtime.

Expectations are once again high for the 49ers going into the 2024 campaign as they try to get that long-elusive sixth Super Bowl victory. Purdy's performance last season validated their decision to go with him as their quarterback and puts them in a position to potentially be one of the best teams in the NFC once again.