Kyle Shanahan didn't see it coming. The San Francisco 49ers knew their rookie quarterback, Brock Purdy, could play in the NFL. The team believed in him. But did they think the young quarterback would help the Niners reel off eight consecutive wins, extending the team's win streak to 12 games and reaching the NFC Championship Game?
Not exactly.
"I'd like to be able to tell you guys we knew that was going to happen," Shanahan said Wednesday night at the Dwight Clark Legacy Series event. "I will say we were always very confident of Brock. We loved him coming out of college. From his first practice to his last before he played, we felt real good about him.
"I remember always messing with [CEO] Jed [York] and telling him how good our third-string quarterback's been playing, who's getting three reps a day, and who's his height. And he's like, 'Okay, whatever.' And I'm like, 'No, he's been playing really good.'"
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Purdy got his opportunity after the 49ers lost starters Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo. The rookie stepped into action against the Miami Dolphins during Week 13 and showed the confidence and leadership of a seasoned veteran.
"And then I remember when everyone got hurt, and Jed comes up, and he's like, 'So we're going to be all right. You've been telling me how good he is,'" Shanahan said. "I'm like, 'Whoa, slow down. It's his first time playing.' So we always kind of feel that way because he plays ... the way you guys saw him is what we see every day, and that's what we saw in college, but until you put someone under that fire and you put them out in the NFL atmosphere, usually that kind of takes time to get used to.
"And what was so cool about Brock was he was the same dude we saw in tape from college, the same guy we saw in practice. And you got to see that right in the middle of the Miami game when he went in randomly and took over. And from then on out, you got to see it, and it gave me a ton of confidence and our players a ton of confidence. And I think once all you guys (the fans) saw it, I think it gave you guys a ton of confidence."
Shanahan does not doubt that, once healed, Purdy will be the same player fans fell in love with this past season. The timeline for the quarterback's recovery is a bit murky. However, the 49ers will know more once Purdy begins throwing again early next month. The optimistic side of Shanahan believes his young player could be back for training camp.
"As long as Brock's elbow heals right, he'll be the exact same guy," Shanahan said. "And when you have a clean break like that or tear, it will be. You can have a setback, and you can have something heal wrong, but everything's been completely on pace.
"And just watching him now, he's doing the same drills all the other quarterbacks are doing. He's just using a towel to throw, but still doing violent motion, still moving it. He's just not doing with the football. He'll get closer to that, and as long as there's not a setback, we think he'll be there in training camp."
Purdy underwent surgery on March 10 to repair the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) tear in his right elbow. The estimated recovery time for that procedure is about six months, which puts Purdy's return around late August or early September.
Obviously, Shanahan and the 49ers are hoping for an earlier return if the target is training camp, which kicks off at the end of July. For now, the coach believes Purdy benefits from the extra time to learn the offense. Being a rookie last year, the quarterback wasn't around for the start of the team's offseason program. This year, he's been back in the building since April 17.
"He played at an extremely high level," Shanahan added of Purdy. "I think our team got a lot better when he got in there."