QB Brock Purdy Press Conference

QB Brock Purdy

Press Conference – July 27, 2023

San Francisco 49ers

So, how did it feel? The first one back.

“Good. Obviously just felt great getting in the team setting, saying plays in the huddle, breaking the huddle, getting my eyes on the defense, and then just playing. So, it felt really good.”

Was there a time during this process where you felt like you were moving ahead of schedule?

“Honestly, they gave me a plan, we all sat down, had a plan, and we just stuck to it. And it was just get better every single day. You know, once we start throwing, here’s the set of throws we’ve got, here’s the amount of volume, here’s the intensity, and then just work your way up, see how you feel after every throwing session, and then just go from there. So, there’s never been a time in my mind where I’m like, ‘oh yeah, I’m going to be here, here.’ I’ve taken it literally one day at a time, one week at a time, and thankful to be where we’re at.”

So, the process was never accelerated at any point? It was just a plan that you worked?

“Correct, yeah. I mean, right after surgery it was do the simple things. And then once I got my range of motion back, it was, ‘alright, we got a throwing program coming up, here’s how we’re going to ease into it and go from there.’ I just want to thank first of all Dr. Keith Meister, Keith Coker, [director of reconditioning] Ryan Donahue, [head of player health and performance] Ben Peterson, [head athletic trainer] Dustin Little, all the guys here, everyone that’s been in the process. Tom Gormely, Will Hewlett in Florida. Thank you. All the guys, they all played a huge part. We all sat down and had a great plan. And so, shout out to all those guys and like I said, never jumped ahead of schedule or tried to do anything out of the ordinary. We had really great advice from all those professionals along the way and slowly got to where we’re at and still have a plan to continue to carry out. It’s not, ‘oh, we made it and we threw in practice. It’s over.’ We still have some stuff to do.”

At this point, is there anything physically that is bothering you or do you feel like there are any limitations on what you can do out there on the field?

“No. I feel like I’m good enough to play 11-on-11 football. And so, we talked about that when I got back here with [head coach Kyle] Shanahan and basically, I told him, I’m like, ‘hey, I feel good enough and confident enough that if I got into an 11-on-11 situation, I could make every throw.’ And so that’s the conversation that we had, and they gave me the green light to go out there and go. And obviously the medical staff told them, and they’ve been with me this whole time, throwing in the offseason, they gave Shanahan the green light that, ‘hey, he’s good enough to do it.’ And they’ve seen me throw. So, we’ve all been on the same page the whole time. But yeah, I feel good enough to play football right now at camp, 11-on-11, still got to work up the volume and just continue to get better every day.”

So, all the arm angles too?

“Yeah, all the arm angles and everything. Yeah. Good, good.”

Do you anticipate being sore tomorrow and is that a normal process when you just start camp coming in?

“So, I’ve actually worked up to this point throwing back-to-back days, you know, have a heavy day of throwing and the next day maybe tune it down a little bit. But I’ve worked up to get to this point to where my arm doesn’t hurt or anything like that. Yeah, it might from throwing and stuff, any quarterback would tell you, ‘hey, I’m going to go ice my arm or do whatever with my arm and do treatment on it,’ and that’s where I’m at. And so yeah, to answer your question, it’s not like killing or anything, I’m not going to practice tomorrow or this or that. Arm feels great.”

Has Shanahan told you that, barring setbacks, you will start Week 1 against Pittsburgh?
“No, we haven’t had any kind of conversation like that. It’s, ‘hey, how can I be great today at practice? Let’s get these reps, let’s get the mental reps and let’s continue to grow.’ Obviously, what we put on tape last year was great and all but there’s still a lot of areas where I have to grow and get better and stuff. So that’s just where we’re at. We’re not trying to get too far ahead of ourselves.”

You’ve obviously played in bigger stages than a Thursday practice in July, but being your first practice back today, what was this morning like for you? Did you have any nerves, anything like that coming into today?

“Yeah, I was excited. Obviously to end the year like we did last year, it was heartbreaking and everything and so just to go through surgery, rehab, the offseason, everything and missing OTAs. Just to be able to get out and say a play to my teammates and break a huddle, like to me, I was so excited just thinking about that. And so it was almost like last night, it was like Christmas, you’re excited for the next day. And so that’s how it was for me this morning and everything and I was excited to get out there.”

You sleep okay last night?

“Yeah, tossed and turned just with excitement, but slept good.”

How’d you think it went? There was a pick early, I know the circumstances, a couple of times it looked like you really did cut loose. How did you think that all went?

“Yeah, I mean there’s just some rust I still got to knock off. I obviously didn’t get any reps and OTAs or anything like that with 11-on-11, seven-on-seven, whatever. Just the pace of the game, seeing a defense, dropping back, going through reads. So today it was good just to get out there, go through some reads and stuff, let it rip. Obviously, I had the interception, but you know, that’s something I’m going to just go in the film room, learn from it and get on the same page with [WR Brandon Aiyuk] B.A. and continue to grow. And so yeah, more than anything I was just excited to be able to get live reps.”

Would you say the arm strength is exactly the same as it was when you were healthy?

“Yeah, I’d like to think so. You know, throwing go balls and cutting some balls to the sideline, I feel like I have the strength to get it there just like last year. And so, I’m going to continue to try to develop my arm and get it stronger and stronger and go from there.”

When you went to Jacksonville just a couple of weeks ago, what was that process like and were there certain hurdles that you wanted to achieve on that trip to help you get back to 100-percent?

“Yeah, I think when I left and went there it was more, ‘hey, I’ve got to pick up the intensity. So, with these throws, we might not get a lot of throws like I did back here in San Francisco, but when I go there let’s pick up the intensity, let’s start ripping some stuff. And so that’s really what we focused on. And there were days where man, it was like, yeah, my arm was fatigued, and I had to just continue to build up my strength when I was in Jacksonville. And so, when I left and came back here, I felt like I was in a great spot, being able to throw back-to-back days and all that kind of stuff. So that’s really what we focused on was being able to throw back-to-back days, just like practice when we get into camp and into the season and stuff. So definitely, Tom Gormely, Will Hewlett, those guys got me right. And when I left it felt good.”

What have Tom Gormely and Will Hewlett meant for your development?

“Yeah, I feel like leaving college, going into the NFL last year, I feel like I just had to obviously improve just whatever, I needed to develop into a quarterback, like a real true professional quarterback, and those guys did that for me. Breaking down my mechanics and how to be efficient with my hips, and my shoulder, everything. And then obviously being able to be savvy as a quarterback. Will did a great job with some drills and stuff to help me get to that point. And so, I feel like they did. They were the beginning stages of developing me and getting me ready for last year, my rookie year. So going back this year, I didn’t have a real offseason in terms of developing myself just because I was rehabbing my arm. So those three weeks away, to get back with those guys, we were able to dig into some great mechanics and get me better. And so that’s what they did.”

How different is it coming in here as QB one versus last year?

“Yeah, just looking at the reps compared to last year, I had basically two reps at the end of each period. So, I didn’t have that many reps and then I was able to go into the pre-season and get some reps. But now coming in, being able to get a lot more looks on the defense and sort of take command of the huddle and stuff, like for me it feels a lot better. I feel more comfortable with the playbook and everything. But being away, not getting the offseason reps and OTAs, I’ve just got to get back into that kind of state of mind where, ‘hey, bullets are flying, I got to go here with my progression’ and sort of just get sharp again with that. But it feels good.”

Were the deep shots down the right sideline part of you going through your progression?

“Oh, that was just part of the read, depending on what the defense was doing, where I was going to end up throwing. So, they gave us some man looks and just let it fly.”

How much more of the mental side of the game did you do during your rehab and take us through like just a typical day coming back?

“Yeah, obviously you wake up, take all the right supplements for your arm and everything, and then you go and do your rehab. I still worked out my body, did everything, just with my body itself, not just my arm. And then I come home and get into the playbook, watch some film, break down stuff that I could’ve done better last year, just a couple hours of that, and then still try to do a little bit more treatment after on my arm. And then honestly like sleep. Just getting really good sleep. I know it sounds cheesy, but that I think is a gamechanger in terms of getting back from an injury. So, I just try to do every little thing right. And then over the first two months I started seeing like, ‘oh shoot, I feel really good.’ And so, I’ve just been trying to maintain that and get better.”

Do you attribute your deep throws, overthrows, to just maybe being a little bit more amped up than usual or maybe just hadn’t had time to work with the chemistry of your receivers?

“Yeah, those first two go balls, one to [WR] Jauan [Jennings] and then the other to [WR] Deebo [Samuel]. I just haven’t thrown a go ball to them all offseason, so I just got to get on the same page with them and everything. And yeah, obviously being out there for my first day, I wanted to let it rip and all that, but it felt good coming out of my hand. I’ve just got to get on the same page with them and get more reps.”

Was a part of you scared that this would really be a career-threatening injury?

“Yeah, for me it’s like I said however many months ago that was compared to now, it’s been the same. I know who I am in God and in Christ and I’m not going to let any other kind of circumstance, if I’m the starting quarterback or the backup or whatever, I’m not going to let that determine who I am as a person. And so, that’s what my identity is in and there’s nothing that can come my way to get me to act a certain way and think I deserve this, I deserve that. I am who I am, who God has called me to be, and I let everything else fall into place.”