Rapoport: If the 49ers want Tom Brady, it won’t be cheap

Don't expect Tom Brady to offer his favorite childhood team, the San Francisco 49ers, up a discount should head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch be interested. Rookie Brock Purdy earned over $700,000 during this season. He's set to cost the 49ers nearly $900,000 in 2023, a drop in the bucket compared to the $30 million the Tampa Bay Buccaneers paid Brady this season, and they will be accounting for his salary for years to come, with the future Hall of Fame quarterback's salary cap hit spread out through 2026, per Spotrac.

NFL insider Ian Rapoport believes an offseason quarterback decision may come down to Purdy versus Brady. A significant factor will be the cost of each. We don't even know for sure if Brady will play in 2023. Instead, he may just opt to begin his lucrative broadcasting career.

Get ready for a lot of Brady discussion until the quarterback decides on his NFL future.

"My sense, in talking to people close to him, is it's more likely that he comes back than not," Rapoport said Monday morning on KNBR's Murph & Mac show. "I believe that if he was going to go somewhere, the 49ers would be a place he would consider."

That makes sense on Brady's part. The team is coming off its second consecutive NFC Championship Game appearance, has playmakers like Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle, and Deebo Samuel on offense, and possesses a top NFL defense.

Does it make financial sense for the 49ers, though?

"If Tom Brady tells the 49ers, 'I would only want to be with you guys,' they would probably have to consider it," Rapoport continued. "I don't know that that would be their number one option. They have someone who they really like as a potential starter who is extremely cheap. Tom Brady typically has played for $30 million the last couple of years. My guess is that is about what it would [cost the 49ers]. He's not going to come back for a $1 million minimum salary. He's just not. He's never been willing to do that, and he's just not.

"For the 49ers, let's just say Tom Brady comes back. It's Brady at $30 million or Brock Purdy at like [$900,000]. And you have Trey Lance, who's also there. I don't see him going anywhere. Just try to develop him and see what happens. That's probably your choice, Brady or Purdy, at least to me."

You can listen to the entire conversation with Rapoport below.