49ers expect Brock Purdy to be ‘same dude’ after six-month injury recovery

Brock Purdy still is deciding which route he will take in recovering from the complete tear of the UCL in his throwing elbow.

One consistency that has emerged in the days since he suffered the injury in the 49ers' loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship Game is a three-month timeline to begin his journey back to getting his arm in throwing shape and a return to the field in six months.

“That was the coolest thing for me to hear about that once three months is over, they start the rehab of just building the arm back slowly, and by six months it's built back," coach Kyle Shanahan said Wednesday. "And that's when I started asking questions. Does that mean ease him in?

"When you think of ACLs and they said, 'No, the buildups have been from three-to-six and at six months, he is the same dude and full go.' So, that was the most encouraging part that I heard.”

As of Wednesday, Purdy had yet to decide on the path he'll take, whether he lets his injury recover or undergoes surgery to repair or reconstruct the UCL.

“Yeah, I think he's continuing to get some different opinions, talk to different people, which I think is smart in an instance like this, there's a lot of smart people out there," 49ers general manager John Lynch said Wednesday. "You want to make sure you're thorough. He's continuing to go through that process.

"I think the positive bit of news is that it seems to be consistent that the right approach is that one that takes about that six-month mark. Now, everybody will also say you never know until you get in there. Every surgeon will tell you that on every surgery, you always like getting in to see exactly. The MRI tells you a lot of the pictures, so they're continuing to work through that process, but we seem encouraged by the prognosis that that's kind of where it's at.”