49ers unlikely to play Purdy in preseason opener

Nick Wagoner, ESPN Staff WriterAug 7, 2023, 05:38 PM ET
Close

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy‘s first preseason snaps in a game will likely have to wait until at least the Niners’ second preseason contest set for Aug. 20 against the Denver Broncos. If they happen at all.

That’s because the plan, for right now, is for Purdy to handle his usual duties as the starting quarterback in joint practices Thursday and Friday with the Las Vegas Raiders but not in the preseason opener Sunday at Allegiant Stadium.

“I doubt Brock plays,” San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan said. “We haven’t fully decided it yet. Usually, when we go scrimmage against guys, we rarely play our starters … [We’re] more into the practices than the games, but I’ve changed my mind a couple times too based on how the practices go. Usually, that’s our plan, but let’s see how those practices go.”

Shanahan has often erred on the side of rest for his starters in the preseason, choosing to give the players he wants to see snaps in the second game but generally resting them in the other two contests. Because Purdy is coming off a surgical repair of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow on March 10, the Niners have been bringing him along at a prescribed pace intended to have him ready for the Sept. 10 opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Purdy has been following a two days on, one day off program since the Niners opened training camp on July 25. Shanahan said at the time that the hope was Purdy could begin practicing without the required day off about two weeks into camp. On Monday, Shanahan indicated that is forthcoming.

“It’s coming up,” Shanahan said. “I think it’s next week. It hasn’t changed since the beginning, so yeah, it’s coming up.”

None of that is to say Purdy will not participate in preseason games at all. While the 49ers have Trey Lance, Sam Darnold and Brandon Allen to take reps in Purdy’s stead, Shanahan left the door open for Purdy to play at some point in a preseason contest.

“I think it’s always good to play,” Shanahan said. “I don’t think he has to. A lot of guys don’t have to, but it usually helps.”

One player who almost certainly won’t play in the preseason, regardless of what happens with his lingering holdout, is defensive end Nick Bosa. He has stayed away from the Niners’ facility since the start of camp as he awaits a lucrative contract extension expected to make him the highest-paid defender in NFL history.

Despite Bosa’s absence, the Niners have remained steadfast that a deal will get done at some point. General manager John Lynch said last week that with a little patience “ultimately this thing will work out.”

Bosa is entering the fifth and final season on the rookie contract he signed in 2019 and is coming off a league-leading 18.5-sack season that garnered him the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year award. And while the Niners would prefer to have Bosa, who almost never plays in preseason games anyway, signed and in camp, Shanahan echoed Lynch on Monday in expressing zero concern over Bosa’s contract stalemate.

“I don’t know if Bosa has ever done a training camp and he’s done pretty good,” Shanahan said. “I have as much confidence in Nick as any player I’ve ever been around in terms of how he prepares and everything and I know they’re going to get it right, both sides, and excited for when I do see him.”