Report: 49ers QB Brock Purdy 'Clear Favorite' To Start Week 1 Against Steelers
There’s beginning to be more clarity on the quarterback the Pittsburgh Steelers could potentially face heading into Week 1. NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt The Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Brock Purdy is the “clear favorite” to start Week 1 against the Steelers in San Francisco, according to NBC Sports Bay Area's Matt Maiocco. Purdy had surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament and is expected to get full medical clearance around August 21, which would give him 20 days to prepare for the season opener. He has proved he can be a winner and lead a 49ers team that is run and defense-oriented to victory, and is being a steady presence and a game manager. The biggest threat remains 49ers running back Christian McCaffery, who along with wide receivers Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk are the anchors of an offense that can be explosive at times.
Published : 11 months ago by Joe Clark in Sports
There’s beginning to be more clarity on the quarterback the Pittsburgh Steelers could potentially face heading into Week 1. NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco reported today that Purdy is the “clear favorite” to start on September 10th against the Steelers.
Purdy had surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament, an injury more common in baseball pitchers. Last week, he began throwing a football, and Maiocco reports that he could get full medical clearance around August 21, which would give him 20 days to ramp up and prepare for the season opener.
Purdy was Mr. Irrelevant, the last pick of the 2022 NFL Draft who got thrust into a starting role with injuries to Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppollo and led San Francisco all the way to the NFC Championship game before getting injured himself. Garoppolo is now in Las Vegas, while Lance is still recovering from a knee injury and competing with Purdy and Sam Darnold for the starting job in San Francisco.
He’s proved he can be a winner and lead a 49ers team that’s run and defense-oriented to victory be being a steady presence and a game manager. While he doesn’t quite have the arm or the speed of Lane, he’s proven to be less mistake-prone while leading the 49ers offense. He finished the 2022 season with 1,877 yards, 16 touchdowns and just three interceptions, and led San Francisco to wins over the Seattle Seahawks and Dallas Cowboys in the postseason.
Knowing that Purdy is the likely starter gives Pittsburgh more of an idea of what to prepare for. If Lance was the starter, Pittsburgh would need to be more prepared for him to use his legs and try to escape the pocket, while Purdy is more of a traditional pocket passer. The biggest threat remains 49ers running back Christian McCaffery, who along with wide receivers Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk are the anchors of an offense that can be explosive at times.
Week 1 is going to be a big test for the Steelers. San Francisco is one of the best teams in the NFL, and if the Steelers can make a statement with a win, they’ll put the rest of the league on notice about what sort of team they can be in 2023.
Topics: Football, NFL, San Francisco, Pittsburgh Steelers, San Francisco 49ers