Brock Purdy is the frontrunner to be the starting quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers in 2023. Of course, that is assuming he is healthy. Purdy is about three-and-a-half months removed from surgery to repair his right elbow's torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL). This procedure is typically accompanied by an estimated six-month recovery time.
Purdy appears ahead of schedule, and the 49ers remain optimistic that their second-year quarterback will be ready before Week 1.
If he's not, Trey Lance or Sam Darnold will lead the offense against the Pittsburgh Steelers on September 10. What is ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler hearing about the quarterback situation in Santa Clara, other than a healthy Purdy being the undisputed starter?
"I will say this, and this has persisted for a while: When the 49ers signed Sam Darnold early in free agency, gave him decent money," Fowler told Rich Eisen on Monday, "and considering people have always just sort of been enamored with him around the league, for better or worse, despite the struggles, there are a lot of people around the league that think that he'll play meaningful snaps for San Francisco this year based on why they signed him, when they signed him, just some of the ability, and that he's a perfect fit for Kyle Shanahan's offense that might actually bring out the best in him for once.
"And so I'm curious to see how that plays out. It's like a choose-your-own-adventure with them, too, because Trey Lance, the issue really seemed to be accuracy in the limited time that he played, but they still really do not know what they have. Even when you talk to people over there, they're like, 'He just has not played enough football to evaluate him. And he is a hard worker and he does a lot of good things that we still liked when we drafted him two years ago.' They're just in a tough spot with it."
Fowler doesn't dismiss the possibility that Lance could surprise a lot of people with a strong training camp. To cast him aside and label him a bust after just four NFL snaps seems premature. Of course, as a third-overall pick and a player that the 49ers gave up a lot to acquire, the young quarterback has been the target of much criticism.
"So if any of those three guys played snaps, it wouldn't shock me, but I would put Purdy as the one, if he's healthy," Fowler said. "That seems to be the case over there. But there's a feeling that Darnold could be out on the field at some point and playing for that team in meaningful snaps."
What happens to Lance if Darnold beats him out and Purdy is a healthy QB1? Does Lance stay on as the third quarterback on the depth chart?
"It's tough to even imagine that because you got a No. 3 overall pick that you gave up three first-round picks for as your emergency quarterback in that case, which you can have now if you've got three guys on your active roster," Fowler said. "New NFL rules, so you can have an emergency third quarterback. And in this scenario, that would be Trey Lance."
If San Francisco moved on from Lance, it might not be until sometime during the season. No one has been banging down the 49ers' door to trade for the quarterback this offseason. That might change if there is an injury elsewhere in the NFL.
"Maybe he plays in the preseason, does great, and then there's an offer in late October from a team that's quarterback got hurt at the trade deadline," Fowler speculates. "There's a lot of potential opportunities they can brace for if they do want to move on. But talking to other teams, they think they'll probably move on eventually because there's no fifth-year option. They don't see San Francisco picking up that option for him.
"So really, you're looking at two more years under contract when you can try to get some value for him. But yeah, it's a fascinating situation because I don't necessarily think he's done a bunch wrong where they're so down on him, but they just don't know what to expect, and Purdy is the better option right now."
The insider warns that nothing is certain for Purdy either, though. The young quarterback has started only eight NFL games, including three playoff games. While that sample size is larger than Lance's, it's not significant either.
"I keep going back to this," Fowler continued. "The most important catalyst in San Francisco is Kyle Shanahan, right? It's really his baby, for the most part, and just from what I heard when I asked about Brock Purdy and Kyle Shanahan, it's just Brock is in tune with Kyle. He does what Kyle wants, he runs the offense how he wants, but he's got a ceiling, right? He doesn't have that huge arm and the big-time ability.
"Will Kyle tire of that eventually? I don't know. But they have so many weapons, and a good offensive line, and so many playmakers, it probably doesn't matter. When Purdy's out there, you know what to expect, you know what he's going to do. And Kyle likes that. That's just my sense."