There are a lot of eyes on the San Francisco 49ers and their quarterback situation as the team heads into training camp. They suffered an exorbitant amount of injuries at the position last season, which played a big part in the team losing in the NFC Championship Game to the Philadelphia Eagles.
The injury that people are keeping the closest eye on is the one which was suffered by Brock Purdy. Purdy, who was Mr. Irrelevant in the 2022 NFL Draft, was thrust into the starting lineup after Jimmy Garoppolo suffered a foot injury in Week 13 against the Miami Dolphins. Garoppolo was in the lineup as a replacement for Trey Lance, who suffered a season-ending ankle injury in Week 2.
Purdy suffered an injury of his own in the NFCCG, injuring his elbow. But, he was forced back onto the field when his backup, Josh Johnson, suffered a concussion. It ended up being a UCL injury and the Iowa State product underwent surgery on March 10.
The regular timetable for recovery based on the kind of surgery that Purdy had is about six months. That would put his availability for Week 1 against the Pittsburgh Steelers in jeopardy, but a recent update has shed a positive light on the situation.
According to Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area, who has spoken to someone working with Purdy in Jacksonville, he is ahead of schedule. Purdy went to Jacksonville after team workouts to continue rehabbing with his private quarterbacks coach, Will Hewlett and sports performance expert Tom Gormely.
“It seems like there’s been no blips,” Maiocco said Thursday on KNBR’s “Murph & Mac” show. “Everything seems to be working toward September 10 at the Pittsburgh Steelers.”
While it is encouraging to hear that Purdy should be in the lineup when the regular season kicks off, Maiocco did admit he is unsure of how training camp will go. Those plans have yet to be released, and we will find out in the next week or two once the team reconvenes for training camp.
“But everything I’ve heard is that the progress and the [physical therapy], all that is right on pace, that there’s been no setbacks,” Maiocco continued. “And it’s not necessarily all systems go. That’ll come a little bit later. But as I understand it, they’re very happy with where he is in his recovery from that surgery.”
It sounds like there are still a few hurdles for Purdy to overcome, which isn’t surprising. He is only four months removed from surgery, which is about two-thirds of the way through the rehab process. Updates will continue trickling in, but for now, the good news is that he remains on track for the regular season.
