Jason Kelce admits feeling ‘sorry’ for 49ers after Brock Purdy injury

Eagles’ Kelce admits feeling sorry for 49ers after Purdy injury originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea

Jason Kelce sympathized with the 49ers and its fanbase after learning Brock Purdy suffered an elbow injury in the 2023 NFC Championship Game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

On the Feb. 1 episode of the “New Heights” podcast, which the Eagles center hosts with his brother Travis Kelce, the former explained to the latter that the 49ers found themselves in a “terrible” situation that did not “have any good outcome” and gave Purdy his flowers for pushing through.

“I know on the sideline, it was just like, I think at one point, I was like, ‘Man, am I supposed to feel sorry for these guys?’ and then I was like, ‘You know what? Yeah, I do,’ ” Kelce recalled. “I legitimately was like, ‘Man, this sucks for that team. I would hate to be going through it.’

“I get it man, I really do. I still got a ton of respect for that team.”

Earlier in the conversation, along with giving the 23-year-old props for trying to push through his torn UCL, Kelce applauded the 49ers for the job they did in the 2022 NFL season.

“And shoutout to the 49ers,” Kelce added. “How many teams could get to the NFC Championship with a third-string quarterback, third-string rookie, and on top of that, then you’re on your fourth-string quarterback and you’re still in the game,” Kelce said.

“These dudes have a great team, a great roster and I got nothing but respect for all those guys — all these guys are unbelievable players. It really does suck their season got determined in that fashion.”

The future Hall of Famer continued to say that he wished the Eagles faced a fully-healthy version of the 49ers in the NFC title game.

“You want to be able to say you beat a team with the right guys out there, you know what I mean?” Kelce said. “Not trying to throw shade anyway, it was not the matchup that everybody knows it should have been.”

Story continues

Though Kelce understands the Eagles faced a severely-limited version of the 49ers, others believe that Purdy’s injury robbed San Francisco of a Super Bowl LVII appearance.

Kelce and the Eagles went on to face his brother Travis and the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII, with the Chiefs winning 38-35.

Meanwhile, San Francisco is preparing for another quarterback competition as Trey Lance, Purdy — once he recovers from elbow surgery — and newly-signed veteran Sam Darnold vie for the starting QB job.

RELATED: Why Purdy’s elbow surgery could be ‘blessing in disguise’

Despite the eventual score, almost everyone, from fans to NFL players and pundits understands that the 49ers’ matchup with the Eagles did not go how anyone thought it would.

And as someone on the field that night, it did not take long for Kelce to understand the gravity of the situation.

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