Brock Purdy is coming into the 2023 season as the starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, and head coach Kyle Shanahan said that it did not take long for them to determine that he was their best option, even during last season when Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo were injured.

“That was never going to change,” Kyle Shanahan said, according to Michael Davis Smith of Pro Football Talk. “It took about three games.”

Shanahan elaborated and said that it would be hard for Trey Lance or Sam Darnold to beat out Brock Purdy in practice this offseason due to what he put on film last season. Lance and Sam Darnold have competed for the back up spot, and were possible options if Purdy was not ready to start this season due to his elbow injury.

“He's been [the starter] since last year ended,” Shanahan said, according to Smith. “He was always clearly our starter, but there were so many questions about his injury, how he'd come back from it, that we didn't even know if he'd be ready for this year, so we had to prepare for everything else. I mean, Trey was the guy we gave the keys to last year, so we were definitely excited to have him in a situation [to play], and we also didn't know if Brock would be back, so we needed someone to come in and at least compete with Trey, and give us a chance, because Trey was hurt last year, and just got cleared before OTAs. That's why we brought Same in here. And those guys have been competing their butts off, and I feel great playing with those guys. But like I told them, like I've said to media, like I said to everyone since Day 1, based on what Brock did on tape last year, it's hard to beat that out in practice.”

The 49ers' quarterback situation will be worth monitoring this offseason, as they hope Purdy proves to be a legitimate starting quarterback.