The San Francisco 49ers kicked off organized team activities (OTAs) this week. Head coach Kyle Shanahan and quarterback Brock Purdy spoke to reporters after Tuesday's practice. Here is everything they had to say.
Transcripts provided by the San Francisco 49ers Communications staff.
Head Coach Kyle Shanahan
How long after seeing the schedule release did you learn about your rest differential disadvantage for this coming season?
"You mean with the bye weeks? Before I came in here. I promise I didn't really think about it. And he gave me some questions before, he said we have four of them coming off a bye. I was like, 'isn't that what we had last year?' So maybe we had less, I don't know what we had last year, but I feel like we had a lot last year too. So I try not to think much of it."
Not a big deal in your mind?
"I know what our preference would be. But you never know whether that affects you or not until you get there. And there's lots of things that go into the year, lots of things that can hurt you on the schedule. I'd rather it be a different way, but there's a lot of things that could be worse too."
We're not always used to seeing DL Nick Bosa here at this time of year. Any particular reason that he's here? And how happy are you to have him around?
"I love Nick being around, love him getting a chance to do football with the guys and stuff. I think Nick's first year here after the Super Bowl, his first offseason, we had Covid. The next year after the offseason, he had a torn ACL and the year after that he was in contract stuff. I believe that's right. And then this is the first year that it has kind of just been a totally normal year. And I think the one year that it was like that he came to a few OTAs, didn't come to all of them, but if he didn't just come to minicamp. So I'm glad he is here the first week and hopefully it'll continue."
RB Christian Mccaffrey is not here. Is there any particular reason? Any injury or just not here?
"No, just like everyone else. It is voluntary. I'm not too concerned about Christian. But no, he hasn't been here."
You added a number of corners through free agency and in the Draft. Who has been the early standout?
"It's just two days of practice, so I'm not going to crown anyone yet. But I've been impressed with everyone, really. Everyone in these first two phases, one and two. Just the attention to detail, the technique, reviewing cut ups from last year and then trying to carry it over into these two practices. We did a lot more three-deep yesterday, mixed in more two shells today. Watching the guys who are new pick it up and get right in with the standard of how we do things, and also the guys who have been here taking a step forward and what they try to work on the offseason."
Do you have a first impression on the defensive line with DL Leonard Floyd joining it? And then DL Malik Collins and DL Drake Jackson, status on those guys?
"Drake isn't healthy so he can't go. Malik is waiting until his kids graduate to be here, which I believe is next week. But it was cool watching them all run out there together. We're doing some half speed stuff with the defensive line and everything, and offensive line. So we've only had one period a day where we're going really as a team. But it was cool watching them go out there as a group and really just to begin the process of them all kind of being together."
Leonard Floyd, he's got a lot of length as a pass rusher and experience. What do you see out of him?
"Just really that he would fit into whatever you asked him to do. We've gone against him so much in different schemes on different teams and whatever the team has asked him to do, wherever he is been, he's kind of always the same player to us. And he gets here and he is going to do a couple new things and stuff, but he's got so much experience standing up, putting his hand down. He has done a little bit of everything. And the techniques we've asked him to do in Phase 1 and Phase 2, he has really shown those in Phase 3."
Sorensen told us that he hadn't talked to you that much before he got this new promotion. Did you know him very well? Did you have to get to know him before you elevated him? What did you know about him even through the years, even when he was on staff?
"I mean I think I got to know him real well in these two years together, before this year. Before that, it was more from people I know real well who had worked with him. Guys that had worked with him in Seattle, guys in Jacksonville, guys that knew him as a player and stuff. So guys who could explain to me the type of guy he was, things like that, know the type of guys that we like. Then his first year here, he was a candidate. I mean I talked to him a lot about possibly being a coordinator, he'd just been here one year and everything and I didn't think that he was quite ready for that. Then I could quickly see in year two, just dealing with him more and watching him take the second year in our defense, just how ready he was. It's been better than even expected so far."
Bringing in Brandon Staley, do you kind of arrange how that relationship is going to work? Or are Nick and Brandon kind of figuring it out?
"I'd have to arrange it if there's a problem, but there's not. Nick knows who the defensive coordinator is, and Brandon does. I have to talk to both of them. I think Brandon is in a real good spot, just leaving from being a head coach and how he can help us in a number of roles. I think Nick feels very excited to have a guy on the staff who has called plays, who has done it at a number of different places and things. I think he's helped him a lot in those ways. But no, there's no really gray area of it. Brandon is helping him on a lot of things just like all the other coaches do on the defensive staff. With Brandon's expertise just in other areas than just defense, with his expertise as a head coach and things, I thought he was a real benefit in the draft and helps me in a number of areas also."
Is there a benefit for WR Ricky Pearsall with WR Brandon Aiyuk and WR Jauan Jennings not being here, that he is just closer to the front of the line and maybe more reps with QB Brock Purdy?
"Yeah, I always think the more reps you get, the more experience you get, the more different situations you can be put in. I mean, if you're talented enough and made of the right stuff, you only get better. But sometimes it's hard to generate those things, especially in a practice when it's not full speed all the time and things like that. So the more reps you can get of it, always helps the right type of player."
What's the status with Jauan? I know he hasn't signed his restricted contract.
"Similar to what I said about all the guys who aren't here, it's voluntary so there is no status yet."
With Brock, obviously this year he's been healthy all season. Have you seen any differences in him either physically, mentally or both?
"He is definitely ahead of where he was last year this time, but I mean it was just real cool being able to go through a whole year of cutups just like we did last year and just starting in Phase 1. The command he had of going out there with the drills and everything and really trying to apply the stuff we had just been watching in the meeting rooms, that really happened all off our 2023 tape. Last year he had to do it and then it would just be frustrating for him because he couldn't really go work on it. He had to just visualize and think about it and had to wait for that opportunity in training camp. This year right away it's been awesome for him to lead us through the whole offseason, just drill wise and everything. It's he's been great to have for a first full offseason."
Kyle, what's the general feeling around the facility? Is it kind of like first week of school in terms of energy and excitement level?
"Not really because most of our guys were here. There's a few new guys like [WR] Deebo Samuel and Nick and [DL Javon] Hargrave, [FB Kyle Juszczyk] Juice, that we just saw in these last couple days. But most of these guys have been here for a while and it almost feels like we just finished playing too. So you take that into account. I mean some guys feel like they just finished playing. It's always different with the rookies and free agents who have come in, where some guys didn't go to the playoffs last year, so they've been done since early January. So it's a little bit different for most guys. But that's why it's kind of nice to ease into this. We've had two good practices, but I'm not goinh say they were too tough and we'll just turn it up a little bit each week."
Deebo Samuel has a new number, a new slimming number. How does he look with it?
"You think it's slimming?"
How did you think he looked?
"I think it was good. I think one can be a risky number if you're not slimming. But I think he came back and he looks really good in number one. So I'm excited for that and hope to keep it that way. But I thought it was risky and he said it was going to look good and I think he's right so far."
What do you see in RB Isaac Guerendo? You drafted a different player. Is he a receiver? Is he a blocker? Halfback? Fullback? Tight end?
"He is a running back which starts out that way, but a running back. You're not going to be a running back in the league if you can't run with the football. And then it's hard to stay in the league if that's all you can do. So you need to be able to do a little bit of everything. He doesn't have a ton of experience doing it all, but he's got the makeup, he's wired to do it all and it's been fun working with him just for a couple weeks here. Once the rookies got here, he's fit in here in these two practices and he'll get better at developing and all the things that aren't running the ball. Hopefully he'll get as much as we can give him in these seven-on-seven practices but get used to our style and how we do it."
With QB Joshua Dobbs, not suggesting the way he played here against you guys, you were like 'oh let's sign him' but that was an example he had really hadn't played up until much until last year. Were you surprised at all by some of the games and performances he had just given his such a journey before?
"Not necessarily because of the journey that he's had, but I was just surprised when the guy gets traded when the preseason is over and I forget what week we saw him, Week Four and just see a guy have that much command of the offense that fast to miss an offseason and stuff, an offense you didn't play on is real tough. Going against him and studying him going into those games and after because he was on Minnesota too, it was cool how he gave his team a chance to win and being new to it and just being able to have totally command of whatever scheme he was doing. When we got to see him in a number of different ones last year and you could see that when given the opportunity, he figured it out, gave his team a chance to win. From a backup guy, that's the first thing that you want is just a chance for a guy to come in and give your team a chance to win. I also think he's got the ability to do a little bit more than that."
I know these practices are optional, but how are you feeling about Brandon Aiyuk's situation?
"Same as I do about all these guys that aren't here. I wish they were here but it's something that's part of the business and anytime it's part of the business part you try to respect it. Stay out of it as much as possible. Look forward to the days when we can just focus on football."
Do you have a sense of how Dobbs is picking up this system?
"Yeah, he memorizes everything very fast. He's extremely smart. He's got all that down. Now, it's about just reps and doing it. You can learn it on paper and stuff fairly fast, especially a guy like him. But now it's about the reps and doing that and getting the timing and rhythm of it."
You invested in a lot of pretty talented special teams players over the summer. What's your level of interest in the new kickoff rules and how big of an impact do you think that will have?
"I got a lot of interest because it's all new to all of us and the more you look into it, the more we practice it and stuff and try to simulate the techniques and everything, you realize how different it is. Not just from a technique standpoint but the space and time and how you stagger the guys and all the different strategies of it. There's going to be a lot of scheme that pops up throughout the year that it'll be an experiment because the scheme is about adjusting to what you see and trying to come up with new things. It's all going to be new for everybody. Do you coach the kicks like you used to with hang time? Do you want to squib them? There's so many things that we can all talk about and discuss but you're not going to really know until you try it and stack it up versus teams. And I promise three preseason games won't be enough. So it'll be exciting for everybody. But it's something I think everyone's going to be equally interested in and we'll see how it goes."
With some guys not being here being business related is Christian McCaffrey in that group?
"I'm not sure if that is the case on any of those guys. I'm not throwing them all in who's here for that reason, who's not. But it is all voluntary, so we'll see when it becomes mandatory."
Is OL Jake Brendel dealing with something?
"Yeah. I know you will question me, but he has some knee tendonitis, so we don't expect to see him in OTAs. He could tough through it but we're going to be smart with him on it."
Brandon Staley took your role in the throwing the ball in the defensive skeleton. You took it back. How did that happen? I know you love doing that. What was it like to see him doing it?
"He wanted to show me that he could do it better and we had a big debate on it. No, I'm just joking. I can't do it all the time. My arm hurt that day also, I think. Sometimes I don't like the plays that they're giving the defense. Then they showed me my stats one day and they were terrible. And so it's getting kind of weird. Do we want it to be competitive or do we want to actually just do it to help the players? And we should do it to help the players. So we're going back and forth on that. Yeah, he'll do it sometimes, not all the time though."
Is there somebody actually you tracking your stats on those?
"They did that last week and they surprised me with them [laughs]. I thought they should've been a lot better. I can't tell you that [laughs], but I've been working with my kids on the weekend so we'll see if it gets better."
QB Brock Purdy
You got to throw a couple passes today to your new wide receiver WR Ricky Pearsall. What are your impressions of him after a couple practices?
"Yeah, he's done a good job coming in, obviously learning the playbook, coming to work every day. As a quarterback and really the whole team, we always like young guys that can come in and they're willing to do the dirty work to learn and start from the ground up. And he has done that, he has done everything right. Getting out on the field, being able to throw him the ball, and obviously seeing his hands, the way he moves, all of it, it's been good. Really excited to have him."
Are you no longer one of the young guys?
"Yeah man, I'm a vet [laughter]. No, I don't know. I'm still just trying to get better every day, and I still understand that there's such a long road ahead of me in terms of getting better and what I need to do to get better. So that's where I'm at. But it's crazy, you've got guys that are younger than me now on the team, it's just new. It's different."
Head coach Kyle Shanahan was just saying how cool it is this year that you guys can go through the cutups, and you can work through something, then you can actually go out on the field and do it this year. Have there been moments this year where it just feels, I mean obviously I'm sure it's different, but it does it feel different in terms of how advanced you are or further along you are at this point in the offseason than you have been in the past?
"Yeah, I just think with the playbook and the play calls and all that kind of stuff, it feels a little bit smoother. It registers in my mind a lot quicker. When I go out there, I know what we're doing. Now it's 'where can I get the ball to the right guy faster?' And so, sort of just processing those kinds of things helps. At quarterback, you can obviously continue to work on your arm strength and all that kind of stuff, but I think just the way you process, the way you go through reads, you can't get enough reps. And so, that's where I'm at. Watching the game tape, coming into practice and running those plays right now during OTAs for me is huge. Getting better with different concepts and getting more comfortable and familiar more and more with the verbiage. So it's been good."
Is the offense constantly evolving or is what you're doing now basically refresher stuff from last year, from previous seasons?
"I mean honestly, I would say it's evolving a little bit. There are certain plays and concepts that we'd sort of run throughout the year and that we'd get to when we're scheming teams. And then in the offseason, it's like all right we have these base plays and really we don't run these a whole lot, but the plays that we do run, we're starting to install those early on and run them. And so, I think it's evolving a little bit. But at the same time, we're still running some really good plays that Kyle has had in forever in this offense and that have continued to show success year after year. We always have to hone in to those kinds of concepts early on in the offseason. But I would say we've got guys that have played, we understand how to run this system pretty well and we're able to do things I think a little bit quicker than in year's past."
What is it like having DL Nick Bosa on the field this time of year, when he's usually not here during OTAs?
"I mean, it's sweet. You could tell it means something to him. To show up phase three, practicing on the field, it's pretty special. For all of us to see that, it's like 'All right, if Bosa is taking it serious, then we all should.' But regardless, being out in the field, giving our guys looks, the offensive line looks, for myself, pocket movement, all that kind of stuff, it's huge. And like I said, you can't get enough reps of it. But for him to be back in the building around the guys, it means a lot. And so, it makes all of us excited to start rolling for the season."
We saw you throwing out the first pitch at the Giants game, saw you on the stage with throwing beers at TE George Kittle. That whole celebrity part of it, you probably can't walk very many places now where people don't know who you are, and that has to be something that's different for you in the last couple years. How have you adjusted to that part?
"Yeah, it's a little different obviously. But at the end of the day, and I've said this a million times, but I just try to keep it simple in terms of who I am as a person, as a human. There are people that come up and want pictures. It's like, I was that kid growing up and I always wanted whoever I was looking up to or whatever to give time and just be a human and talk and take a picture, sign some stuff. I always remember that. And throughout all this, the offseason stuff and doing different things, I try to give back to people as best as I can, and not be on a pedestal or anything like that. So that's how I look at it. But you know, we've been able to enjoy some different events and stuff. Having an offseason, not just rehabbing 24/7, so it's been good to hang out with the guys outside of football and have a little offseason. It's been good."
How important is that for your mental state to have that time and get to just have some fun and not be all about rehab?
"I think it's huge, especially being out in this area, checking out, getting a better feel for the Bay Area and what it has to offer, the people, everything. It's been fun being able to sort of go out and explore and do different things. Last year obviously it's 24/7 rehab, go home, rest up, get ready for the next day of rehab. So now it's obviously get after it with my craft and the mental with the playbook and film and stuff. But then on the weekends and stuff, when guys are all able to get together and be able to have some fun together, it's been refreshing. Obviously we're all business on the field, but to get off the field and have those relationships, that's something that we'll always have for the rest of our life."
What's the overall feeling like this time of year? How much are you feeling the energy and excitement leading up to the season starting to build or does that kind of happen more later when all the guys are here?
"I feel it now for sure. Guys are coming in and competing. It's like, nothing's ever given to you. You've got to fight for your job, you got to continue to have that little competitive nature in your mind every day when you walk in like, 'Dude, I've got to find a way to get better.' And you could feel that with everybody in the building. So I'm excited. Obviously, there's some guys that aren't here, but once we all do get together again, come camp and everything, it's going to be sweet, it's going to just take it to another level. But right now we got guys that are learning everything. We're starting from the ground up. For me, it's like alright, we've got the 2024 season right in front of us, so I'm excited for it."
How important is it that you guys, not you particularly, but it all gets worked out with WR Brandon Aiyuk and he's back in this building and on the field?
"Yeah, I think it's extremely important. He is a playmaker. Love throwing to him. Love B.A. as a person. So yeah, it's definitely important. Like I've said this before, it's out of my control. But for me, I'm showing up every day trying to get better with the new guys and the guys that are here and that is what it is. But hopefully, it gets settled soon."
Have you talked with Indiana Pacers Point Guard Tyrese Haliburton in the last couple of days?
"No, I'm leaving him alone dude. He is balling. So letting him do his thing and definitely supporting him and I got his back. So really happy for him. I hope he goes all the way."
What do you think about potentially going to 18 games in the regular season schedule? What's your take on that?
"If that is the case, I think two Byes would be nice. That kind of thing. It's a long season. You go through so much physically and mentally, everything. But, if we're going to extend it another game, I think another Bye would be pretty nice. But at the same time, it's longer, so I don't know how everyone around the League feels about it, but I know that we're going through it every single week, week in and week out to get back for the next game. So, I don't know, there's pros and cons to it. I don't really know how I feel 100-percent on it yet."
Have you had any chance to throw with WR Jacob Cowing and what do you think he's going to add? A guy with that kind of speed, does he create space out there?
"Yeah, he's quick. He's twitchy. I'm impressed with just the way he's acted and interacted with guys. Very smart, very respectful, and a guy that I could tell he is going to get after it in terms of knowing what his job is. And as a quarterback, I feel like you're always looking for a guy that you can trust. So yeah, I've seen that so far from him. I'm excited to see what he can do just in terms of taking off the top and running downfield and everything once we get to it. So, I'm really excited to have him."
Your Mr. Irrelevant event is next month in Newport Beach. What is your memory of that and do you follow who Mr. Irrelevant was this year? Are you kind of cognizant of all the irrelevance from your year forward?
"Yeah, I've kept track and everything. It's been pretty cool just to see who's come after me and whatnot. But I know they do a great job down in Newport for a great cause more than anything. Yes, it's Mr. Irrelevant, but they're raising money and doing a great job of giving back to the community, which is pretty cool. So what they do is awesome. I'm all for it, got their back and they obviously celebrated me when I got drafted last not knowing what the future was going to hold. So they've been great people, great organization and I hope all the Mr. Irrelevants drafted moving forward have all the success in the world. So it's pretty cool."
You want Brandon signed and happy. Did you have to hold your breath at all through the Draft just with reports. Kyle and President of Football Operations and General Manager John Lynch didn't deny that it could happen with both Brandon and WR Deebo Samuel. Did you kind of like have to watch and to make sure that they were still on the team?
"Yeah, for sure. The Draft is going on and stuff and obviously you're excited to get guys that you're drafting but at the same time it's like, 'dang dude we could have some kind of trade stuff happen and whatever.' But like I said, all that's out of my control. I was sort of just sitting there, waiting to see what our team was going to do and everything. My job is to show up and rip it to the open guy and try to win games. So that's my mindset with it. But I do love my boys and I obviously hope that we can all continue to play together."
