SANTA CLARA – Brock Purdy was never one to think he was above all of it, but he had no selection when he and his wife accompanied George Kittle and his wife on a week-long getaway to Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
Purdy turned off his phone, gasped as he watched Kittle unleash a 330-foot drive on the golf course greater than a mile above sea level, and fished a bit before getting back to the grind .
“It was nice to go out there and breathe,” Purdy said Thursday because the 49ers (4-4) continued their preparations for a Week 10 visit to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-5).
For whatever reason, and even Kyle Shanahan isn't sure what it’s, the 49ers have often used the bye week as a start line in his last seven years because the 49ers' head coach.
The 49ers have a 43-19 record after a bye under Shanahan, in comparison with 25-36 before the annual week-long break.
In the last two seasons, the 49ers were 16-2 after their bye, which, like this 12 months, took place in Week 9. And one in every of those losses got here as several starters sat down for the ultimate regular-season game against the Rams in 2023 while the NFC West was already finalized.
Purdy hopes that might be the case this season as well. The division race is up for grabs with Arizona at 5-4, the 49ers and Rams at 4-4 and the Seattle Seahawks at 4-5.
“It's nice that we had a bye to get the blokes healthy, and once you get the blokes back together you say, 'Okay, we know the way vital the second half of the season is,'” Purdy said. “We know that from the last few years, but every year is different. That doesn't mean we're going to do the things we've been doing for the past few years. It means putting our heads down, going to work one day at a time and working at it.”
The 49ers could get a shot of adrenaline in the form of running back Christian McCaffrey, who is recovering from Achilles tendonitis in both feet and is practicing for the third time this week. The 49ers can wait until Saturday before elevating him from injured reserve to the 53-man roster.
Shanahan isn't sure the bye week has that much to do with what happens when play resumes.
“I always like to feel like we’re going to be better when we leave, I always like to feel like we’re going to be better the week after,” Shanahan said.
Left tackle Trent Williams didn't think twice about the 49ers' success after a bye.
“I’m not a big stats guy, so I don’t really see it that way,” Williams said. “I don’t know if that has anything to do with the farewell. Maybe the games will become more important as the season progresses. Maybe the increased sense of urgency, but I can’t really say which things make a difference.”
Middle linebacker Fred Warner likes the way the 49ers played in the second half of the season, which also bothers him about what happened before the bye.
“I would hope we win more before the bye,” Warner said. “For some reason we like to make things difficult for ourselves. There’s something about playing desperate that makes you play a little better, I guess.”
Line coach/running game coordinator recalls his time coaching under Tony Dungy in Tampa Bay in the 1990s, when the Bucs were terrible and Dungy was “ranging from scratch” and doing week-long fully padded practices.
“The league is slowly asking for less and less (work),” Foerster said. “We kind of deviate from what the league says and hesitate to mess around a lot on the bye week, and I think that paid off.”
Peer pressure among veterans who set a good example when it comes to getting enough rest and recovery is also helpful.
“I think a lot of it is due to our players and also how they handle free plays because they usually use them properly,” defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen said. “If guys use it right, you should come back feeling pretty good.”
Here's what happened to the 49ers after Shanahan's bye week:
Year/Farewell Week/Post-Bye Record
2023: Week 9, 7-2. The 49ers started the week reeling with three straight losses, with Shanahan saying his team looked tired. With six straight wins, they started the break 12-5 en route to the division title.
2022: Week 9, 9-0. McCaffrey had just arrived and Jimmy Garoppolo was the quarterback heading into the bye. McCaffrey and Purdy switched offenses and Nick Bosa played at Defensive Player of the Year level as the 49ers took a 13-4 lead.
2021: Week 6, 8-5. The 49ers lost two of their first three games following a bye against Indianapolis and Arizona before turning heads with a win over the Rams and a strong finish to advance to the playoffs as a wild card at 10-7.
2020: Week 11, 2-4. Bosa was out with a torn cruciate ligament, Garoppolo was out with a foot injury. The 49ers finished a nightmarish COVID year at 6-10.
2019: Week 4, 10-3. The 49ers actually came out of the gate strong with a 3-0 record and were good even after the bye, going 10-3 to win the NFC West and Shanahan as head coach to secure the major league title at 13-3.
2018: Week 10, 2-4. Garoppolo left in Week 3 with a torn ACL and the 49ers had little to celebrate other than George Kittle's breakout season (88 receptions, 1,307 yards, 5 TDs) in a 4-12 season.
2017: Week 11, 5-1. Jimmy G was all the rage after arriving in a Halloween trade with New England. The 49ers went 1-9 going into the bye, and after a post-bye loss to Seattle, Garoppolo became the starter and the 49ers finished the game 5-0.
Shanahan's conclusion after leaving: 43-19
Shanahan's total before bye: 25-36
Shanahan's record as HC: 68-55
MCCAFFREY UPDATE
McCaffrey attended practice for the third time this week and first in two days. Shanahan will make an official report tomorrow, but McCaffrey doesn't have to be taken off injured reserve and added to the 53-man roster until Saturday.
With Thursday being the most demanding day of practice, McCaffrey's recovery on Friday could be the determining factor in how much, if any, he plays.
“What he brings to the table just fires up everyone else,” Purdy said. “We've all had the bye week and are feeling good and fresh and there are two or three next to us in the backcourt, it's been great. Looks great when it's moving and it's trending in the right direction. I'm excited to see what happens.
McCaffrey is expected to speak to the media on Friday.
Former 49er Richard Sherman said on his podcast that he expected McCaffrey to start against Tampa Bay, that he could have started against Dallas and that the information came “from the horse's mouth.”
“All signs point to him playing an important role in this game,” Sherman said.
PEARSALL begins
Rookie first-round pick Ricky Pearsall Jr. said he was becoming more comfortable with Purdy after missing the first six games of the season. The result was shot in the chest on August 31st. He had seven catches for 84 yards and is looking for more.
“I think from the first game to the second game I felt a lot more comfortable out there,” Pearsall said. “I think this will continue to improve and I will continue to get faster.”
Pearsall had mixed feelings about leaving.
“It was nice to get back to Arizona and see my family, but I’ve only had two games,” Pearsall said. “I’m trying to get going.”
Remarkable
– Edge rusher Nick Bosa (hip) worked out with his teammates but remained in the weight area during the media broadcast.
– Wide receiver Deebo Samuel (rib, oblique) and running back Jordan Mason (shoulder) both wore blue non-contact jerseys.
— Sorensen said it will take time to see how veteran free safety Tashaun Gipson fits into the practice squad after signing. Gipson signed with Jacksonville, but served a six-game suspension for violating the performance-enhancing drug policy and was released without playing this season.
“We’re just happy to have him back, let’s see how he feels,” Sorensen said. “He hasn’t done much, so we’ll kind of figure it out as we go along.”
– Jon Feliciano is back in practice after his practice window was activated and will be a depth player at center and both guard positions if he is added to the 53-man roster, according to Foerster.
— Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield missed practice for the second straight day because of a toe injury, but told reporters, “I'll be good to go on Sunday.”
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