As the San Francisco 49ers locked up Brock Purdy to a sizable $265 million contract extension, there is no doubt that there is a lot of pressure that comes with it. After the 49ers' failures last season, the team will need to lean on Purdy to boost the offense, as head coach Kyle Shanahan has a message for his quarterback.
Fans had been wondering when both sides would agree so they could focus on the season ahead rather than the intricacies of a contract extension. Shanahan would say to the media that he wants Purdy to do what he has been doing since emerging as a productive player, which is being the team's leader, according to NBC Sports.
“I want him to be the leader he’s always been,” Shanahan said. “There’s no worse thing to do than ask people to do something extra just because they’re a contract. You know, that’s when you start making stuff up. Brock’s earned his contract, and he’s going to earn what he gets going forward.”
Shanahan would also talk about what he said to him regarding the new extension, though there wasn't much talk between them about it.
“When I see him in person, it's not something we think about,” he said. “It was just that day, it was congratulations and you know, Brock, he's been the same since day one and I think that's, you like to say that about a lot of people and we're never lying up here or anything, but Brock is as much like that as not any football player I've met, but any person I've met.”
49ers' Brock Purdy is being more vocal after contract extension
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While Purdy celebrates the contract extension, the job now is to bring the team back to relevance after a frustrating 2024 campaign, which was a season removed from making the Super Bowl. One player who's noticed a more vocal Purdy is teammate and star tight end George Kittle, according to 49ers Webzone.
“One thing I've already seen from Brock this offseason, just being back around for all of [the offseason program] and stuff, is just his voice is heard significantly more in the building, which I love, whether he's breaking down the team, talking in the locker room,” Kittle said. “He's always kind, he's always nice to everybody, but he's just more vocal to everybody in team settings, which is huge.”
At any rate, San Francisco looks to improve after a 6-11 2024, which put them last in the NFC West as they open the upcoming season against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, Sept. 7.