Head coaches in the NFL have to put out fires from time to time, and San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan quelled recent flames regarding his quarterback and quarterbacks coach.
While a reporter commented about 49ers quarterbacks coach Brian Griese‘s admission of heated discussions with quarterback Brock Purdy on the sidelines during games, Shanahan deflected it.
“I don’t know exactly how it goes over there,” Shanahan told reporters on Thursday about the discussions between Griese and Purdy. “They’re usually sitting down talking, but I get pretty heated. Griese handles me pretty well.”
“So I don’t think he’s out of control or anything. If he was, I definitely would’ve pushed that button a number of times. Brock has that in him too,” Shanahan added. “Brock’s a competitive dude. It’s not like he’s just going to sit there. I think we’re all kind of similar.”
Brien Griese & Brock Purdy Both Joined the 49ers in 2022
The 49ers owe a big thanks to QB coach Brian Griese, he suggested to the team that Brock Purdy had something special they needed to look at in the draft.
Griese played quarterback in the NFL and worked with ESPN before his coaching stint with the 49ers, which began in 2022. Purdy came to the 49ers that same year as last pick in the draft, but he also became a starter and MVP candidate after his chance came amid injuries to now-former Niners quarterbacks Jimmy Garoppolo and Trey Lance.
“We like to have honest real talks and when you do it throughout a football game it’s intense. You expect to have that,” Shanahan said regarding Griese and Purdy. “If you ever work with someone who you don’t have those type of conversations with, it’s usually not that genuine of a relationship.”
“I love those guys’ relationships. I think they’ve been great together. I think when you’re like that and you’re consistently like that, I think guys really appreciate that because it’s how I’d want people to be with me just so you can get the most out of yourself,” Shanahan concluded.
Griese and Purdy will work together again on Saturday as the 49ers look to out-score a high-flying Packers offense that put up 48 points against the Dallas Cowboys in the Wild Card round.
Brock Purdy: ‘We Want to Win’
Purdy previously talked about the sideline conversations with Griese and likewise downplayed it.
“At the end of the day we want to win and we’re competitors at heart,” Purdy told reporters on Wednesday. “He played this position, he played it well, and so he gets it.”
“We’re obviously very hard on ourselves at the quarterback position and we have a standard that we have here. Whenever I’m not playing at a level that I should be, he’s the first to tell me, which I love,” Purday added. “As a quarterback, I want a coach who’s real and holds a standard and doesn’t allow any room for error and doesn’t have any slack on us.”
“If that were the case, I don’t think I’d be playing good football,” Purdy continued. “I wouldn’t be able to play at my full potential.”
Purdy’s potential went sky-high in the 2023 regular season as he threw for 4,280 yards and 31 touchdowns, and he completed 69.4% of his passes. He can add to the storybook season with another win on Saturday.
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Kyle Shanahan Addresses Brian Griese’s ‘Heated’ Discussions With Brock Purdy