SANTA CLARA – Brock Purdy took off his gray 49ers sweatshirt Friday and as he walked toward the locker room showers, his sore right shoulder was exposed.
There was no noticeable swelling or lump, other than minor scarring from treatment for the reason that once-subtle injury last Sunday. His muscular 24-year-old looked as strong as ever.
Appearances may be deceiving. The same goes for words in an NFL team's injury descriptions, an Instagram doctor's prognosis, or a reporter's feelings of déjà vu.
“I don't want to say there are any long-term concerns,” coach Kyle Shanahan said Friday, referring to Purdy's MRI scan and suggesting the quarterback will miss Sunday's game at Green Bay.
Brandon Allen will start the spot. But for a way long?
It's sensible to exercise caution to guard a bona fide franchise quarterback who threw for a 49ers-record 4,280 yards last season with a surgically repaired elbow and is awaiting a 49ers-record contract extension on the likely bitter end of this season.
Shanahan and general manager John Lynch said Purdy's MRI on Monday didn’t reveal a serious, franchise-altering illness.
“We thought he just needed some rest and we really weren't worried about him being unwell this week,” Shanahan said. “But when he started on Thursday, (his shoulder) just surprised him, surprised us with how it felt.”
However, it's no surprise that a shoulder injury can grow to be a significant firestorm.
Currently, public proclamations minimize any long-term impacts.
Purdy wasn't made available to reporters, but as he walked through the locker room Friday, he tried to exude positivity, saying, “We're all doing well.” Even in a subsequent conversation with a staff member, his demeanor remained as upbeat and polite as ever.
Neither of Purdy's understudies, Allen and Josh Dobbs, have a history of shoulder injuries, so that they were hesitant to discuss how scary they need to be for a quarterback.
“I’m not too worried about it, I don’t think any of our guys are,” Allen said. “He will do rehab and come back as soon as possible. And as for the shoulders, it happens. I don’t think it will be something permanent or long-term for him.”
Three seasons ago, when the 49ers last visited Lambeau Field, Jimmy Garoppolo remained every week faraway from suffering a shoulder injury – a ruptured capsule, the 49ers said – in a wild-card playoff win at Dallas. Garoppolo played through the injury and the 49ers won without scoring an offensive touchdown.
Two months after losing within the NFC Championship Game, Garoppolo surprised the 49ers by choosing shoulder surgery, complicating a possible trade or release and keeping him on the roster. That made for an ungainly but vital comeback in 2022, serving as a helpful bridge between Trey Lance's cameo appearance in two appearances and Purdy's rise to the playoffs late within the season.
Go back nine years and there's one other dilemma with the 49ers quarterbacks. Colin Kaepernick was considered a probable player in Seattle, however the 49ers surprisingly placed him on injured reserve a day before kickoff. He headed for surgery to repair a torn labrum in his non-throwing shoulder. Three weeks before this IR move, Kaepernick was on the bench and spent the next offseason rehabbing for his final season with the 49ers and the NFL.
An even messier subplot developed with Kaepernick's predecessor, Alex Smith. In 2007, a feud erupted between Smith and third-year coach Mike Nolan, who publicly denied Smith's shoulder pain stemming from a September 30 breakup. Smith played a couple of games injured after which admitted he had excruciating pain in his shoulder after the 49ers took him off form with a forearm strain. Smith recovered and rebuilt his profession, albeit under different coaches.
Now Purdy is stepping down for an unknown period of time.
Allen recounted their Friday conversation: “He believes in me and says, 'You're here for a reason.' “Go in, step up, play well.” He’ll be back. So I’m not nervous about it.”
“He's fine. He’s in good spirits,” Dobbs added. “Obviously I don’t want to speak for him, but he wants to be out there. So he’s going to make every effort to get back out there and we’re going to hold it off for him until he gets back.”
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