Rourke suffered a rib injury during the second quarter of the 49ers' preseason opener against the Tennessee Titans. He was playing well before exiting the game. Rourke was examined in the blue medical tent before heading to the locker room for further evaluation.
The initial examination by the 49ers did not reveal any broken ribs. However, Rourke was having difficulty breathing, prompting the team to send him to the hospital for further evaluation.
"He was struggling to breathe, so they took him to the hospital just to check on everything, make sure it's all right," head coach Kyle Shanahan said after the game. "X-rays in here didn't show it was broken or anything, but we'll see what we find out tomorrow."
The decision to take Rourke to the hospital came at halftime.
"When you don't see something on an X-ray, and someone's struggling with something, then you just got to go cover your bases and look for more," Shanahan added.
Rourke finished the game 12-of-14 passing for 101 yards. He also rushed for 14 yards on three carries. With Brock Purdy and Mac Jones not suited up for the game, Adrian Martinez was the only other available quarterback. He played the rest of the game.
Shanahan was pleased with Rourke's performance before the injury.
"I thought he looked good," Shanahan said. "Got the ball to the right spot, thought he hung in there, played well, did a hell of a job on that drive. Looked good out there, I thought."
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