There was a slight surprise Thursday when quarterback Brock Purdy was among the 49ers who took the field for practice following Wednesday’s off day. Thursday was also supposed to be a day off for the signal caller as he wraps up his rehab from offseason elbow surgery according to the plan laid out by head coach Kyle Shanahan.
Instead of taking Thursday off, Purdy was a full participant and took all the first-team reps like he has on all the other days he’s been on the field. It appeared that Purdy had taken a step forward in his rehab and no longer needed the additional day off to start the week. Shanahan shot that notion down in an explanation that didn’t jibe with what was previously explained about Purdy’s return timeline.
“No, because he’s had two days on, one day off,” Shanahan said Thursday in his post-practice press conference. “And so, he had yesterday off, we don’t want to go two in a row. So, he went today, he’ll go tomorrow. Then he gets the third practice off. So, it’s part of the whole plan. That’s why we have these three days.”
That’s all well and good, only it’s not how things have been going. By practicing Thursday he for the first time this offseason practiced after just one day off. Here’s how the 49ers’ practice schedule has gone and Purdy’s participation:
July 26 – Purdy out
July 27 – Purdy in
July 28 – Purdy in
July 29 – Day off
July 30 – Purdy out
July 31 – Purdy in
August 1 – Purdy in
August 2 – Day off
August 3 – Purdy in
If the schedule remained the same, Purdy would’ve missed Thursday then participated in Friday and Saturday’s sessions.
Here’s what Shanahan said about Purdy’s schedule on July 25 when the team reported for camp, emphasis ours:
“We’re never going to have him go three days in a row. And so, like today, he threw just with his schedule from the weekend and everything. So today he threw, so tomorrow he won’t practice. So, the other guys will do the same thing as OTAs. They’ll both go with the ones. And then Brock will have practices two and three to go, then he’ll take the next one off. So, keep going that way.”
But wait! There’s more! Here’s what Shanahan told reporters on July 30 about Purdy’s timeline, emphasis ours again:
“Well no. He’s supposed to take two days off, so that’s why it’s perfect for him. He gets the off day and then he gets the one off today and now he’ll throw two days in a row.”
All of this is to say … what in the world is going on?
So, July 25 we have “and then Brock will have practices two and three to go, then he’ll take the next one off.”
On July 30 we have “he’s supposed to take two days off,” and “he gets the off day and then he gets the one off today and now he’ll throw two days in a row.”
All indications are he’s supposed to get a day off after the team gets a day off to ensure he’s getting two days off.
Then Thursday we have “no, because he’s had two days on, one day off” and “so, he went today, he’ll go tomorrow. Then he gets the third practice off.”
Thursday’s quote doesn’t line up with the previous to. So, one of three things might have happened.
The first, and perhaps most likely, scenario is that Shanahan is so consumed with trying to run a football team that he doesn’t know the exact specifics of Purdy’s plan. He just leaves it up to the training staff and team doctors to tell him when Purdy is practicing.
The second possible scenario is that Purdy took a small step forward in his rehab and won’t be getting the additional day off anymore. The team indicated that the extra day off would be for the first couple weeks of camp. It’s only really been one week, but Purdy being ahead of schedule wouldn’t be crazy given that he’s already back in practice. Shanahan may be trying to ease up on pointing toward progress in Purdy’s rehab and putting additional pressure on him to practice in the event that he’s sore or something doesn’t feel right.
Third, Shanahan is right, nothing has changed and we’re just going insane (absolutely possible, FYI).
Perhaps none of this is true and it’s some other scenario.
That’s where we’re at though. Purdy practiced Thursday which was atypical of the schedule laid out by the team, and the one that’s been executed through the first couple blocks of three practices.
Saturday will be the big tell. If he’s off Saturday, then perhaps they just toyed with schedule by a day. If he practices Saturday, it’ll be strong evidence that he’s taken a step forward in his rehab where he won’t be needing the extra day off every week.
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