49ers should explore every option before extending Brock Purdy

Brock Purdy's current contract is one of the simplest in the NFL.

It's four years. No options. It's worth $3.7 million over that span. No bonuses beyond his signing bonus: $77,000, the NFL's equivalent of telling a barista to keep the change.

But that straightforward, small deal is what makes his next contract so convoluted. 

The negotiations loom large for the San Francisco 49ers — and the urgency for a new (and massive) deal will grow, starting this offseason when he is eligible for an extension for the first time. To make matters complicated, he showed more vulnerabilities in 2024 than we'd ever seen. He has played his worst when the financial stakes were on the line.

On one hand, he's not negotiating from a position of power. His contract is the most team-friendly situation in the NFL. He isn't playing well. And he is a recent Mr. Irrelevant, which means there likely aren't many general managers around the league who liked him coming out of the draft three years ago and are now thinking: Let's build around that.

On the other hand, he's a star quarterback, who posted 4,280 passing yards and 31 passing touchdowns in 2023. He's 4-2 in the playoffs. If the 49ers aren't going to pay him, somebody else will. And if that other team gets Purdy back into 2023 form, that'll jeopardize the employment of GM John Lynch and coach Kyle Shanahan, if they don't find a comparable replacement.

There's still a lot we don't know about their upcoming negotiations: Where does Purdy think his value sits? Would he hold out for Dak Prescott's $60 million annual salary? And just how badly do the 49ers like Purdy, or feel they need him, for them to succeed?

We've never seen a contract mushroom like Purdy's soon will. He's set to earn $1 million