SANTA CLARA (Calif.) — Brian Griese spent most of his adult life playing football or discussing it on television. Both of these positions had been the core of the Griese family for over 55 years. However, Griese was suddenly thrust into a new era when he found himself at crossroads.
After two years of working in Monday Night Football’s booth, Griese decided to leave. ESPN hired Troy Aikman, who Griese called a “bigger fish”, to be the sole analyst. Even though TV deals were as common as large player contracts during NFL offseasons (which was almost as common as in the NFL), Griese wasn’t able to wait to see whether one of those offers would come up if he wanted a career that had been his dream.
This is how Griese ended-up at dinner with San Francisco 49ers Coach Kyle Shanahan with his staff in early March. Griese, Kyle’s father Mike Shanahan, had reached out to Shanahan just a few days before to express his interest in coaching the Niners’ quarterbacks team.
Shanahan was interested in Griese’s coaching skills, even though he had never coached before. While he interviewed many candidates, Shanahan had known Griese about 25 years. He was referring to Griese’s time as a player for Mike Shanahan. Denver Broncos In the late 1990s, as an offensive assistant for Tampa Bay Buccaneers Griese played for the Bucs in 2004-2005.
Griese was able to have dinner with the Niners staff and get to know each other. They also had the chance to talk about football and life. It was a great opportunity for Griese to get to know the Niners staff and to discuss how he fits into the San Francisco culture. Shanahan got to learn how involved Griese was in such an important career shift.
Shanahan stated that Brian was very successful and has a family in Denver. Hours change a lot, and they all claim they know which he knows. But it changes once you get into it. “We tried to scare him. We tried to tell him how awful it was and how miserable it would be. And how your wife wouldn’t like it.
Despite Shanahan, staff and their best efforts at a football version of “Scared Straight,” Griese didn’t seem to be bothered. Griese knew the answer to every question Shanahan or any other coach had. He was easy to work with and fit in well with the other assistants. Shanahan called it an easy choice, even though there would be some learning curve. Griese became his man within 48 hours of the first contact and soon signed a 2-year contract to replace Rich Scangarello as quarterbacks coach.
The Niners made a bold hiring, considering their quarterback drama. They were about give the keys of a promising, but not proven quarterback. Trey Lance We were caught up in the seemingly never-ending chaos Jimmy Garoppolo saga.
It remains to be determined if Griese will make a career change. It’s an opportunity to try something new and satisfy his competitive itch. He’ll be back for the 49ers (1-2), when he hosts the Los Angeles Rams (2-1), Monday Night Football (8.15 PM). ET, ESPN/ESPN2/ESPN+/ABC).
Griese said, “I knew this would be a challenge that was right for me but I didn’t know how much until I got into it.” There is no winning or losing at the booth. It was a great job that I enjoyed. It was a great experience. There were leadership aspects as well. I had to lead a team of 150 or 125 people to cover a game. To do it well, under the brightest lights, to communicate with people at home, and to teach them the game. It was all great, but you never knew if you had won or lost.
DIFFERENT CIRCUITSIt is possible that coaching football was an occupational lineage of Griese.
Five games into the 14th NFL season, Bob Griese (father to Brian, then 6-years-old) suffered a shoulder injury. It was severe enough that it ended his 1980 season and his Hall of Fame journey at 35.
He is well-known for his ability to think through problems. Miami Dolphins Bob made a great fit for Don Shula’s legendary coaching staff with his wins. Shula quickly offered Bob a position as the team’s quarterback, which he accepted in 1981.
A wild football coincidence meant that his son’s first season as a coach coincided with his Miami season. Bob also helped navigate a two-quarterback dilemma between Don Strock and David Woodley, which would be called “Woodstrock.” Bob was instrumental in Miami’s 11-4-1 record, and AFC playoff berth.
Shula asked Bob to stay on for the long term because he was such an excellent coach. Bob, however, was too far from his wife and their three children.
Bob replied, “I thought that I could do a great job and Shula said, ‘No, you love it,’” “I replied, “Yeah, I love my family more. It was the hours. It was the hours. I’m a coach and I can see how I could have done it better. It was the right time that was key.”
Bob quit coaching after one season. He joined NBC in 1981. Broadcasting gave him the opportunity to spend more time with his family and keep him connected to the game. His main concern on game day was correctly naming players and offering an analysis in between plays. Bob spent the next 30+ years calling college and NFL games on the radio or television.
Another challenge to a coaching career is that it can often be an independent life, with no family support.
Jay Bilas, ESPN college-basketball analyst, felt that the hours were more important than the hours. He had previously worked as an assistant for Mike Krzyzewski at Duke three seasons ago. It is also the reason he decided to take up the broadcasting job despite having several offers to stay on the sidelines.
Bilas stated, “Ofcourse, you look at it and say, ‘That would have been great,’” “I’m certain that I made the right choice for our family and I won’t second guess that part. Broadcasting isn’t as competitive as being active in sports.
Brian had told his dad this offseason that Brian was interested in coaching. His dad asked him one question: What about his family?
Brook, Brian’s spouse, and Nathan, his two children (both in highschool), stayed in Denver when he got the job with the Niners.
They were the main reason Brian did not make the transition to coaching sooner, and they are why he decided to get in the booth first.
Brian stated, “My children were young and I didn’t want to bounce around the country.” It was that simple. My family had made sacrifices to allow me to play for so long that I felt it was time to come home. My children are now grown-up and ready to move out after 13 years. This was the right opportunity at the right time.
JUST BEFORE THE Brian began to wonder what he would be doing if he were to pursue another NFL broadcasting job rather than moving to San Francisco. Brian thought that aside from spending time with his loved ones, he’d be studying NFL rosters to find additions or subtractions, learning new players, coaches, jersey numbers, pronunciations, as well as diving deeper into offseason stories about all 32 teams.
Griese instead planned to coach Lance and a seventh-round pick, two young quarterbacks. Brock PurdyAs Garoppolo, the Garoppolo training camp was in the background as he recovered from right shoulder surgery.
Brian laughed and said, “I was so grateful to be here,”
Brian accepted the job knowing Lance was the starter. Garoppolo was likely to be on another team. Garoppolo and Brian did not communicate until Garoppolo reported to training camp. Griese worked with Lance, Purdy, and veteran during the offseason. Nate SudfeldThe 49ers finally released him.
It was a natural fit for Brian. Shanahan describes him as “one of our smartest players”. Shanahan reminisces about his time in Tampa Bay as a young assistant. He watched Griese prepare for games, and was amazed at his ability to remember everything and then spit it back.
Brian was able to draw on his playing experience, which earned him instant credibility among the Niners quarterbacks. Although they initially knew him as a broadcaster and soon realized that he had spent 11 seasons in their shoes.
It was easy to build relationships with people who knew little things such as how the huddle should be controlled, what to do when the defense pre-snap is being used and how to deal effectively with the media.
Brian gained this wisdom over his 83 NFL NFL starts with the Broncos Dolphins Buccaneers Bears, Buccaneers, Buccaneers and Bears. He also made a Pro Bowl appearance back in 2000. He was also Michigan’s starting quarterback in 1997.
Garoppolo said, “He just sees the situation very similarly to you.” It’s hard to coach a quarterback. You must be able see the situation from his perspective, which many guys don’t believe they can. He just has the experience of being on that field and being there in those moments. It’s nice having a guy like him around.”
Brian admits that he is still learning his coaching style. This is a process that every coach must go through, but Shanahan also wants to encourage it in the offseason when 14 new coaches were hired or moved into different roles.
Shanahan, his staff and the rest of his team lost their way and Shanahan spent more time coaching coaches to learn how to coach players and understand their communication needs.
“I would suggest that coaching is almost entirely about ‘How do you teach?’ Bobby Slowik is the 49ers’ pass game coordinator. “How can we impart what we know and what our goals are onto people who may not hear the same things we say? This is all part of the game.
IN SOME OF Brian would visit Shanahan in his first weeks of employment, puzzled by why he would tell players to do certain things. However, the message would not be accepted on the field.
“He’d come into the room and be like, “Man, why don’t they do this?” Shanahan said. “Well, welcome, coach. They don’t just have to say it, they have to do it. You gotta reframe it. You have to see it in a new way. Every person is different. Physical differences exist between people.
Brian acknowledges the appeal of seeing a result every single week as a driving force behind his career shift, but he also admits it’s a leap that he wouldn’t have made if it weren’t for Shanahan.
Griese & Shanahan are in some ways similar, having been raised by football fathers who were known for their mental agility and ability to think ahead.
Griese stated, “I wasn’t looking” and that he wasn’t going to take any job. “I was not going to come here if that didn’t make me feel 100% happy about it. It was an exceptional situation, and it came at the right time. I felt really good about that decision.
Griese, a month into his first season on the job is helping the Niners navigate their ever-changing quarterback waters. He hasn’t thought about how long he will be coaching, or whether he will move up the coaching ranks. His priorities are being the best coach he could be and helping to get the results he has been missing.
Griese stated that one of the core values we discussed at our first meeting was to push our comfort zones and challenge ourselves. “I am a lifelong learner. I hope to continue learning and growing as long as I am here on earth. This experience was certainly that. I believe we are approaching, or at the very least, giving ourselves an opportunity for our best selves when continuing to grow.