Had the San Francisco 49ers defeated the Philadelphia Eagles in last season’s NFC Championship Game, head coach Kyle Shanahan would have tried to recruit a retired eight-time Pro Bowl signal-caller for the Super Bowl.
Starting QB Brock Purdy suffered a torn UCL in the early stages of the NFC title game and had to leave. Backup Josh Johnson later suffered a concussion that forced him out of the game, leaving the 49ers with no choice but to go back with a greatly limited Purdy — who could only attempt four passes on the day.
Speaking to Tim Kawakami of The Athletic, Shanahan stated that if the 49ers managed to defeat the Eagles, he would’ve tried to recruit Philip Rivers out of retirement for the Super Bowl two weeks later:
“Whole thing I’m just thinking is, ‘Man, I hope Brock’s not as bad as they’re saying and what’s going to be our Plan B? Are we going to have to get Philip Rivers, someone like that, for the Super Bowl? Because that’s what I’m thinking. ‘Cause I didn’t think Jimmy was going to be ready and all I’m thinking is, ‘Man, I hope Brock is not bad as bad as they’re saying and someone like Philip Rivers is working out and ready to go here in two weeks because that’s still our plan.’ And when I accepted reality, it took me a while to get over.”
Without Purdy and Johnson, the 49ers had no chance against the NFC’s top seed. They fell 31-7, losing in the NFC title game for the second straight year. The Eagles went on to lose to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 57.
Rivers retired after a solid one-year stint with the Indianapolis Colts in 2020, one that saw him lead them to an 11-5 record and a near-upset over the Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card Round. Clearly, Rivers still had some good football left in him at the time of his retirement.
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The New Orleans Saints actually called Rivers about un-retiring in the 2021 season as injuries to their quarterbacks began to pile up. Rivers, however, made it clear that he was staying retired.
