Saturday night's preseason game against the Denver Broncos checked another important box for 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, who continues to make his way back from the elbow injury that kept him sidelined throughout the offseason.
Purdy was given the start for the 49ers in their 21-20 win over the Broncos on Saturday, marking the first time he's seen game action since undergoing surgery to repair an injury to the UCL in his right elbow that he sustained against the Philadelphia Eagles in last season's NFC Championship game. Purdy told reporters Saturday night that he experienced a bit of typical nervousness heading into the game but was able to shake it off and complete 4-of-5 passes for 65 yards on his lone possession of the contest.
"It felt really good just to be out there with the guys in a game environment," said Purdy, who opened things up with two short passes for big gains to wide receiver Deebo Samuel before his drive eventually ended in a field goal. "Obviously, just (getting) the nerves out a little bit, just the build-up to a game and everything, and then being able to get an early completion to Deebo and get things rolling. So it felt really good to be able to get out there and drive and honestly just be in a game environment."
For Purdy, Saturday night was more than just a chance to throw some passes in an actual game. It also gave him the opportunity to experience some contact, which he admitted was an important step given the circumstances.
"Honestly, it was good to be able to drive and then be able to take some hits and get right up and run a play again after that," Purdy said. "It's part of the game, and honestly, it helps me sort of settle into the game, and so I thought it was pretty good to be able to go through that."
The 49ers looked similar on offense Saturday night to where they were last year with Purdy at quarterback, even if they weren't able to get the ball into the end zone. A sack inside the 10-yard line might have been the only thing that kept the 49ers from finishing Purdy's drive with a touchdown.
"I thought he did real good," 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said Saturday. "All the plays that he had, he made, and I don't think he had a bad one. And that sack, we busted a protection, and we'll see if he could have done anything about it and got rid of it. You always try your hardest to get rid of it because once you get sacked there, it's tough to score. But it didn't look like there was much you could do live."
What's next for Purdy? He'll be getting another start next week when the 49ers bring their preseason schedule to an end against the Los Angeles Chargers (Friday, 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT). In the meantime, Purdy will continue to work on improving during practice and shaking off any rust that remains from being away from football for several months.
"I think honestly, just keep honing in on the little details and stuff throughout the week, trying to be accurate as best as possible at practice, obviously chip away at trying to take away from the mistakes at practice and feel not perfect, but get close to it," Purdy said. "So I want to be able to practice consistent and come week one, be ready to rip it. We're getting there."
As far as his health is concerned, Purdy has yet to show any signs of hangover from his surgery since returning to practice at the start of training camp. Purdy's arm is still being closely monitored as he continues to take days off during the week, but so far, there hasn't been anything to worry about in terms of the condition of his elbow. Based on what he has shown in practice and how he looked Saturday night, there's no reason to think Purdy won't be full go once the regular season gets underway.
"We still monitor in a sense how many throws and this and that, so it's not like we're going to be like, 'All right, you can go throw out your arm every single day now from here on out,'" Purdy said. "It's still like, hey, how's your arm feeling? And we're going to get you reps and go from there, kind of thing. So that's where we're at.
"I feel really good, honestly. And even with one day off and then three days in a row, I feel good about that."