SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Brock Purdy knows the process of getting ready for the season after major elbow surgery in the offseason is a deliberate one with each day providing a new test.
He got an unexpected one earlier last week, when teammate Clelin Ferrell hit his surgically repaired throwing arm as he attempted a throw, knocking the ball out and causing San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan to “to hold my breath so I didn’t lose my mind.”
For Purdy, it was just another play on his road back to being the starting quarterback.
“I feel like as a coach, a teammate watching, yeah, they might be scared about that, especially how things ended last year with my arm,” Purdy said Friday. “But, honestly for myself, it’s just football. I wasn’t even thinking about it. He hit the ball out of my hand and I was going through to finish the throw and the ball ended up being on the ground. It’s football.”
Purdy tore the ligament in his throwing elbow in the NFC title game loss at Philadelphia on Jan. 29 and underwent surgery in March. He began throwing in late May and has been taking part in two out of every three practices since training camp opened last month.
Purdy said he doesn’t feel like he needs more milestones along the comeback, like taking his first hit in a game from an opponent, to tell him he has full recovered.
“For me I feel like normal when I’m out there, so I feel like I just got to get into a rhythm and play and go through progressions and just play quarterback,” he said. “It’s not really, ‘Hey, I have to get tackled here just so I feel good about my arm.’ There’s nothing like that, that goes through my mind. So, I just play football, I go through my reads, and I feel normal.”
After showing some signs of rust early in camp, Purdy has looked sharper in recent days.
He got his most extensive work during a heavy practice Friday. He connected on a deep TD pass to Deebo Samuel and had eight straight completions at one point during team drills.
“I just look at it as a process,” he said. “The first day you come in, you’re not going to be all-pro and be killing it right off the get go. It’s like a process of the formations, the operation, getting on track with guys, the receivers being on time and in rhythm. Then from there you progress.
“Where we’re at in camp right now, for me it’s like, yeah, if you have a good day, great, but I have to continue to try to stress myself and get to another level. If it’s a bad day and you wish you would’ve been better.”
While Purdy got the heaviest load of work, backups Sam Darnold and Trey Lance split time with the second team, with Brandon Allen getting third-team work.
Darnold and Lance have been sharing time most of camp as the biggest question at quarterback for the Niners is who will be the backup to Purdy once the season starts.
Packers release QB
GREEN BAY, Wis. — The Green Bay Packers narrowed their backup quarterback competition Sunday by releasing Danny Etling.
Etling’s release leaves starter Jordan Love, rookie Sean Clifford and reigning USFL MVP Alex McGough as the three quarterbacks on the roster. Love, a 2020 first-round pick from Utah State, is entering his first season as the Packers’ starting quarterback after the trade of four-time MVP Aaron Rodgers to the New York Jets.
Jag back at practice
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Jacksonville Jaguars offensive lineman Tyler Shatley felt his heart flutter before, several times in recent years.
He never bothered to get it checked until Wednesday. But with a few extra minutes to spare following a hot and humid practice, the 10-year NFL veteran decided to ask team trainers if they knew what was going on.
It may have been the best call of his professional career.
Doctors determined Shatley was experiencing atrial fibrillation, an irregular and rapid heartbeat. The condition can lead to blood clots in the heart and increases the risk of stroke and heart failure.
The Jaguars put Shatley on blood thinners to help him regulate the condition. But he’s not allowed to take part in any contact drills while on the medication.
Shatley was back at practice Saturday and Sunday, taking part in noncontract work. The team expects he’ll be fully cleared at some point soon.
Panthers sign LB
The Carolina Panthers agreed to terms with four-time Pro Bowl outside linebacker Justin Houston on a one-year contract Sunday.
Houston, a 12-year NFL veteran, gives the Panthers the veteran edge rusher they sought to play opposite Brian Burns. Houston has 111½ sacks during his career, including 9½ last season for the Ravens.
Houston’s best season came in 2014 when he was selected as an all-pro, finishing with 22 sacks while playing for the Kansas City Chiefs.