San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy did not throw in practice on Wednesday due to a shoulder injury he suffered on his (right) throwing side in the team's 20-17 loss to the Seattle Seahawks at Levi's Stadium on Sunday.
The injury is concerning for the 5-5 49ers, as they're set to play the 7-3 Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field in Week 12. The 2022 seventh-round pick out of Iowa State isn't playing his best football this season, but he's the 49ers' best chance to make a run for the playoffs.
Purdy has completed 66% of his passes for 2,613 yards, 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions. His touchdown-to-interception ratio is down from his rookie season when he threw 13 touchdowns and four interceptions in the games he played in. The 24-year-old quarterback threw for 4,280 yards, 31 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in 2023.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan was asked by a reporter on Wednesday what he made of Purdy's progress in his third season in the league. Shanahan said he hadn't seen progress in 2024, but Purdy had already played at a high level in his first two seasons.
“It’s hard to make a lot of progress after the way he played last year," Shanahan said. "It’s hard to make a lot of progress after the way he played in the seven games in his first year. I think Brock’s playing at the exact same level."
Shanahan thinks the offense as a whole has taken a step back in 2024, and that's the reason Purdy doesn't look as good.
"I mean there are different circumstances around him," Shanahan said. "Our team hasn't been quite as good through this."
NFL fans on social media took Shanahan's comments to mean Purdy hasn't progressed in year three.
"So Brock hasn't gotten any better," wrote a fan.
"To say Brock hasn’t made ANY progress in year 3 is backstabbing on your QB," posted another. "This is first full off-season of Brock with Kyle. He is supposed to make progress. Kyle throwing QBs under bus is nothing new."
The 49ers have big questions with Purdy's contract upcoming after the season. San Francisco will have to decide if they want to pay Purdy big-time money in the $50-60 million per year range that top quarterbacks are making in the league.
Maybe if Shanahan decides Purdy can't elevate a team that's not quite as good around him, the 49ers will opt to draft Purdy's replacement. After all, it's hard to keep talented pieces around expensive quarterbacks, as the Cincinnati Bengals are learning this year.
