John Brodie never chased distance. Born in Menlo Park, raised locally, and shaped across the bay at Stanford, his life and career unfolded almost entirely in Northern California. So when news broke that this football legend passed away at 90 on January 23, the reaction was immediate and full of grief. 

“So long to magnificent Stanford and 49er quarterback John Brodie, NFL MVP in 1970,” Biletnikoff Award dropped its tribute on X, tagging a tribute by SFGate. 

At Stanford, John Brodie was already different. From 1954 to 1956, he played for Chuck Taylor and emerged as one of the most complete QBs in college football.

His senior season included accomplishments like consensus All-American, team co-captain, and national leader in passing and total offense. John Brodie completed 21 passes against UCLA in 1954, threw a 62-yard strike against Cal in 1955, and posted 19 completions against Oregon State in 1956. Yet even then, football was not his only pull.

John Brodie nearly chose golf instead. He played on Stanford’s golf team, skipped spring football drills because of it, and after college turned professional, competing in several PGA Tour events. Very few elite QBs ever tested that path seriously. Fewer still walked away from it. 

The San Francisco 49ers drafted John Brodie third overall in 1957, yet he spent much of his early career behind Y.A. Tittle. When the franchise finally traded Tittle to the Giants in 1961, the transition was brutal. Tittle won MVP in New York at 37 while the 49ers struggled. 

Brodie absorbed criticism, stayed in place, and did not back down. By 1965, he led the NFL in completion percentage, yards, and touchdowns, earning Comeback Player of the Year. The narrative shifted but the defining moment was still ahead.

That moment arrived in 1970. At 35, John Brodie led the league in passing, won NFL MVP, and guided San Francisco to a 10-3-1 record and a division title. In Minnesota, in minus-five wind chill, he engineered the franchise’s first playoff win. It was a 17-14 statement from a QB who had waited more than a decade for validation, and it sealed his legacy.

When John Brodie retired after 1973, he was second to Joe Montana in completions and yards, among the leaders in wins and fourth-quarter comebacks, 201 games across 17 seasons. The response to his death told the rest. Tributes poured in showing how the connection was lasting and the respect was earned.

Prayers flow in for John Brodie

Tributes poured in from all angles, starting with his team. “The 49ers mourn the passing of Edward J. DeBartolo Sr. 49ers Hall of Famer John Brodie,” San Francisco 49ers official X page posted. “Our entire organization sends its deepest condolences to the Brodie family and friends.” The 49ers retired John Brodie’s No. 12, inducted him into their Hall of Fame in 2009, and never stopped treating him as one of their own. 

Another response went deeper, tying John Brodie to a formative football memory. “John Brodie bless his Heart was a great QB during his era a HOF as far as I’m concerned he  Gene Washington what a duo should both be in HOF I grew up up watching that era of   why I love it today old AFC / NFL before the merger  WOW,” they wrote. It reflected how he existed for many fans. 

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When SleeperMLB asked who people’s favorite player growing up was, one user replied, “The guy who just passed away, John Brodie! RIP.” That raw emotion revealed how deeply his career still lived in people’s memories, decades after his final snap.

After retiring, John Brodie became a TV analyst, then quietly authored a second career few NFL QBs ever attempted. Another fan wrote, “RIP to 49ers legend John Brodie.” It may be short but it’s still a sentence that carried the certainty of someone who never questioned his importance. 

A standout golfer at Stanford, he joined the Senior PGA Tour and made 230 starts, missing only three cuts. PGA TOUR Champions honored him with a detailed tribute. “Rest In Peace, John Brodie,” it ended. He won the 1991 Security Pacific Senior Classic and logged 12 top-10 finishes.

Though the Pro Football Hall of Fame never came, the response to his passing made John Brodie’s place in the game never in doubt where it mattered most.