John Brodie John Riley Brodie ( born August 14 , 1935 ) is a former professional American football quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers , who had a second career as a Senior PGA Tour professional golfer . During various years of his NFL career , Brodie led the League in passing yardage , passing touchdowns , least sacks , and lowest percentage of passes intercepted . He retired as the third greatest career passer in NFL history , having been named the 1970 League MVP and a two - time Pro Bowler . Biography . Early years and education . John Brodie was born in Menlo Park , California on August 14 , 1935 . He grew up in the Montclair district of Oakland and attended Montclair Grammar ( later Elementary ) School and Oakland Technical High School , where he was a standout athlete . Brodie went on to attend Stanford University , where he was admitted to the Zeta Psi fraternity . He was selected as a consensus All - America in 1956 , his senior year , also playing on the Stanford golf team . Brodie very nearly chose golf for his sporting career , turning professional following completion of his time on the Stanford team and playing in several tournaments on the PGA Tour . Brodie later said of his first golfing experience " You talk about pressure . I was always worried that I wasn ' t going to make the cut . Fact is there was only one time I was close enough to say I was in competition in the final round . I had to make up my mind . I couldn ' t be pro in two sports and do justice to either one . " Professional football career . Brodie first appeared with the 49ers as a rookie in 1957 , seeing limited action . He got more playing time in 1958 through 1960 , sharing time with Y . A . Tittle ; he became the starter in 1961 ( Tittle was traded to the New York Giants ) , and continued in that role through 1973 . Brodie was among the leading passers in the league throughout the 1960s . His best statistical year was 1965 when he led the League in passing yardage ( 3 , 112 yards ) and passing touchdowns ( 30 ) , leading to his first of two Pro Bowl appearances . Following his outstanding 1965 season Brodie was courted by the Houston Oilers of the rival American Football League . Newspaper reports indicated that a contract with the Oilers paying between $ 650 , 000 and $ 1 , 000 , 000 had been arranged . Rumors of a forthcoming merger between the two leagues combined with an improved contract offer from the 49ers moved Brodie to stay put in San Francisco , however , and a multi - year deal paying Brodie $ 900 , 000 over several seasons was instead inked . The 1970 season proved to be a particularly stellar for Brodie . During that year he led the entire NFL with 24 touchdown passes , while taking a league low 8 sacks during the entire season . Brodie also paced NFL quarterbacks with a league - leading 2 . 6 % of his passes resulting in interception . Brodie ' s outstanding season was rewarded when he received the 1970 NFL Most Valuable Player Award . When Brodie retired from the NFL at the end of the 1973 season , he ranked third in career passing yards , behind only Johnny Unitas and Fran Tarkenton . Career after football . After he retired from football , Brodie served as an NFL football and golf analyst for NBC Sports and competed as a professional golfer on the Senior PGA Tour ( now the Champions Tour ) from 1981 to 1998 . Brodie had one win and 12 top - 10 finishes , earning a total of $ 735 , 000 . He had the longest gap between appearances in the U . S . Open — missing the cut in both 1959 and 1981 . Brodie suffered a major stroke in 2000 which rendered speaking difficult for him . In 2006 , Brodie ' s number 12 jersey was brought out of retirement and worn by Trent Dilfer , backup quarterback for the 49ers . Dilfer , a close personal friend of Brodie , hoped to bring attention to Brodie ' s bid for enshrinement in the Pro Football Hall of Fame . He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1986 . In 2010 Brodie was inducted into the African - American Ethnic Sports Hall of Fame , becoming the first European - American so honored . Personal life . John Brodie had four children , three daughters and a son . One of his daughters , Erin , found fame on television in 2003 , while another daughter is married to former NFL quarterback Chris Chandler . During the 1969 NFL season Brodie experienced tendonitis in his throwing arm which caused him to miss two and a half games . He received cortisone shots in an effort to remedy the problem , without apparent success . In desperation for relief , Brodie was introduced to a representative of the Church of Scientology , who — Brodie insisted at the time — used Dianetics - based techniques to completely eliminate the tendonitis by the following week . Thus began a connection between Brodie and the church . Brodie was for years thereafter one of the leading celebrity endorsers of the Church of Scientology . This public role was ultimately ended when several of Brodie ' s friends were expelled or harassed in a power struggle with the Church ' s hierarchy . While professing continued admiration for the teachings of church founder L . Ron Hubbard , " there were many in the church I felt were treated unfairly , " Brodie told the " Los Angeles Times " in 2006 . Professional wins ( 1 ) . Senior PGA Tour wins ( 1 ) . Senior PGA Tour playoff record ( 1 – 0 )