On Wednesday, head coach Kyle Shanahan hinted that Sam Darnold might be the first San Francisco 49ers quarterback on the field against the Denver Broncos on Saturday (Trey Lance started in the preseason opener against the Las Vegas Raiders), leaving many to wonder if we would see Brock Purdy at all during the preseason.
Purdy playing on Saturday remains a possibility, though. During an interview on KNBR, the coach was asked about the quarterback plan against the Broncos.
"We plan on Sam going the first half still," Shanahan said. "We just finished practice here, so I'm going to talk to the trainers with the rest of our team and everything. I might get Brock in there for a little bit. I have not finalized that yet, but thinking about playing the ones, for possibly a series, a little in the first quarter.
"But whatever that is, if we don't (play Purdy), Sam will have the whole first half. And if those guys do open the game with Brock and some of the ones, it probably won't be much longer than a series or two."
Purdy underwent surgery on March 10 to repair the torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his right elbow. He participated in all three practices this week, the first time he's taken part in three consecutive practices this offseason. The 49ers cleared Purdy at the start of training camp but eased him into a full workload.
The 49ers have two preseason games remaining. Next week, they will host the Los Angeles Chargers. After that, they will begin preparations for their regular-season opener on September 10 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
You can listen to the entire conversation with Shanahan below.