Although he made a comeback in the third quarter of the conference final against the Philadelphia Eaglesthe right elbow injury suffered by the rookie quarterback Brock Purdy remain very serious.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the San Francisco 49ers confirmed Monday that Purdy suffered a torn ligament when he took a tackle from Haason Reddick in the first quarter.
The American journalist specifies that an injury of such seriousness could lead to a six-month inactivity for the very last choice in the 2022 NFL Draft.
The team is, however, seeking a second medical opinion which would be synonymous with a shorter fitness for Purdy.
After he fell in action against Philly, Purdy found himself on the sidelines, momentarily handing over the reins of offense to backup Josh Johnson.
Except that at the very beginning of the second half, Johnson himself suffered a concussion, so that Purdy was forced to return to his post, even if he used his arm very little.
The Niners lost the Nationals 31-7, having won ten straight games to end the regular season, and two more meetings in the playoffs.
Injuries to quarterbacks at the most important moment of their season
A season filled with quarterback injuries finally caught up with the 49ers in the NFC title game.
If San Francisco is to break through under coach Kyle Shanahan and end a nearly 30-year drought without a Super Bowl win, keeping the team’s most important player healthy will be paramount.
The Niners came short of a win to return to the big game despite losing Trey Lance in Week 2 and Jimmy Garoppolo to a broken foot in Week 13. But the season faltered. ended without a quarterback attempting to make a real pass on Sunday.
“Neither quarterback could pass and neither was really available,” the tight end said. George Kittle. Our options were down to plus or minus 15 games. There are limits to what you can do (in such a case). »
Purdy injured his elbow during the first possession, which left him unable to throw the ball more than five or 10 yards.
We turned to Josh Johnson, the fourth quarterback. The 49ers stayed in the game thanks to strong defense and running back Christian McCaffrey before everything collapsed, which is around the time when Boston Scott gave the Eagles a 20-7 lead thanks to a 10-yard touchdown run, 16 seconds from the end of the first half.
Johnson eluded a throw-in on the next climb and the Eagles wrested a payoff breakout from it. Jalen Hurts. Johnson left on the first climb of the third quarter, victim of a concussion.
This left the Niners with the choice of a very limited Purdy or playing the remainder of the game as a wildcat, with McCaffrey in charge. They opted for Purdy, but they no longer had a real chance of winning.
The game quickly degenerated and the Niners who were very confident, strong with 12 consecutive victories, had to go home very disappointed.
“We felt really good heading into the game,” Shanahan said. (Once the match started), the circumstances were tough. We should have done some things better, but I’m really proud of our team. »
