The 49ers have reportedly pulled a minor surprise by hiring longtime ESPN analyst Brian Griese as quarterbacks coach.
The move was reported by ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter, who pointed out that Griese has a longstanding relationship with 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan.
Griese, a former Pro Bowl quarterback with the Broncos, played under Kyle's father, Mike Shanahan, in Denver, and he later played for the Buccaneers when Kyle was just beginning his NFL coaching career as an offensive assistant in Tampa. Like Shanahan, Griese is a second-generation football man, his father being Dolphins great Bob Griese.
But the connecting of the dots didn't end there.
Griese, who served as an analyst on Monday Night Football each of the past two seasons, was also a college teammate of Tom Brady with the Michigan Wolverines, where he preceded Brady as the school's starting quarterback.
Griese transitioned into broadcasting shortly after retiring as a player following the 2008 season, but he apparently became expendable at ESPN following the Worldwide Leader's high-profile hiring of former longtime FOX analyst Troy Aikman. Griese meanwhile wasn't known to have any previous coaching experience.
In any event, the apparent Griese-Brady connection wasn't lost on social media, where many users seemed to suggest the Griese hire could foreshadow a potential Brady comeback following his retirement earlier this offseason.
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