49ers' Kyle Shanahan addresses health, readiness of Brock Purdy

It sounds like head coach Kyle Shanahan would start quarterback Brock Purdy if the San Francisco 49ers faced a must-win game this coming weekend. 

"He's healed, he's healthy," Shanahan said Thursday about Purdy, as shared by David Bonilla of 49ers WebZone. "Guys got to get in throwing shape, and they got to play and get used to that. That takes time, but I'm not thinking about his injury anymore."

Purdy underwent surgery on March 10 to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow and started training camp on a "pitch count" even though he was cleared to participate in practices last week. It's believed he will physically be ready to play against a live defense by the regular-season opener at the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sept. 10. 

Purdy missed springtime workouts while recovering from his procedure and remains an unproven commodity even though the final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft became a rookie sensation who won seven straight starts, including the playoffs, before he suffered his setback during the NFC Championship Game. In total, the 23-year-old completed 114 of 170 regular-season passes (67.1%) for 1,374 yards with 13 touchdowns and only four interceptions. 

Shanahan acknowledged Thursday that Purdy isn't yet where he was when he entered the conference title contest on Jan. 29, but the coach sounds confident his QB1 will be ready when it matters most as 2021 first-round draft choice Trey Lance and free-agency signing Sam Darnold compete for the primary backup gig. 

"He's doing some good things," Shanahan added about Purdy. "They're all doing some good, all doing some bad. But we're not worried about Brock. Brock's the real deal. He knows how to play, and we just got to have our team keep getting better, and he'll keep getting better as we go."

The 49ers begin the preseason portion of their schedule at the Las Vegas Raiders on Aug. 13. It's unclear how many snaps Purdy may take across San Francisco's three exhibition contests.