In a case of old news becoming new again, San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan was asked about his comments last month during an interview with The Athletic. Shanahan, coming to the podium to speak to reporters after the team's joint practice with the Las Vegas Raiders, was asked about Phillip Rivers.
The reporter, asking about that previous interview, wondered if the comments were based on conversations the 49ers already had with the retired quarterback.
"Yes," Shanahan said.
The reporter then asked if Rivers was receptive to the idea of joining the 49ers for one game, albeit a significant one.
"He was prepared to," Shanahan responded. "Now that's stuff we talked about throughout the whole year. We would've had to seen how that was for the Super Bowl, but that was the plan most of the year."
What was already known was that the 49ers looked into Rivers after Jimmy Garoppolo suffered his broken foot in Week 13. The next man up was rookie Brock Purdy. The talent-filled 49ers, not knowing how that would turn out, held onto the idea of giving Rivers a call. Things turned out well for the Niners, who reached the NFC Championship Game with Purdy at the helm of the offense.
Of course, Purdy suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his right elbow early during that game, prompting Shanahan to come back to the idea of adding Rivers—had the 49ers beating the Eagles, that is.
"I'm just thinking, man, I hope Brock's not as bad as they're saying, and what's going to be our plan B? We're going to have to go get Philip Rivers, someone like that, for the Super Bowl," Shanahan told The Athletic last month. "That's what I'm thinking because I didn't think Jimmy [Garoppolo] was going to be ready."
Garoppolo was pushing himself to get back on the field with his 49ers teammates. He may have pushed himself a little too hard, which prolonged the injury, forcing the quarterback to undergo surgery after signing with the Raiders.
"I wanted to do that because I knew if something like that championship game did happen, I wanted to be out there," Garoppolo said Thursday. "Whatever. It's all in the past now."
That left Rivers as an option, had things worked out in the 49ers' favor.
In that earlier interview, Shanahan added, "And all I'm thinking is, man, I hope Brock's not as bad as they're saying, and I hope someone like Philip Rivers is working out and ready to go here in two weeks because that's still our plan."
It may not be new news, but the Rivers-to-49ers storyline re-emerged after the coach was asked about it on Thursday.