Brock Purdy has not been officially ruled out for Week 2, but yesterday head coach Kyle Shanahan deemed it a “long shot” the 49ers would have their starting quarterback in place. That could remain the case beyond Sunday. 
Shanahan noted Purdy could miss more than one contest while dealing with a form of turf toe along with a shoulder injury. Providing further details on that front, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports an absence between two and five weeks is expected in this case (video link). As a result, backup Mac Jones should be in place for San Francisco’s upcoming game against New Orleans as well as the team’s Week 3 matchup with Arizona.
Should the 49ers view Purdy as a candidate to miss further time, a move to injured reserve could receive consideration. A placement on IR would ensure at least a four-game absence, so it would certainly represent a notable step based on the evaluation of his injury. For now, attention will turn to the matter of swelling in Purdy’s toe and how it heals over the near future.
The 49ers will rely on Jones to lead an offense which is missing George Kittle and Brandon Aiyuk for however long Purdy is sidelined. Especially if a multi-week absence is in store, adding quarterback depth would come as no surprise. With that in mind, the team hosted Mike White on a workout Tuesday, per the wire. Shanahan said (via Rapoport’s colleague Tom Pelissero) San Francisco would prefer to add a new signal-caller, although situations at other positions on the roster could make that difficult.
White has 15 appearances and seven starts to his name in the regular season. That includes time with the Jets under then-offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur as well as one season with Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel. Both of those staffers have worked for Shanahan with the 49ers, so White represents a familiar option in terms of the team’s scheme despite not playing in San Francisco to date.
The 30-year-old spent 2024 in Buffalo and made one appearance. White took part in a competition with Mitch Trubisky this offseason for the backup gig and he wound up on the losing side of that contest. As a result, the Bills moved on ahead of the deadline for roster cuts. White has remained a free agent into the start of the regular season, but that could change in the near future.
San Francisco has seventh-round rookie Kurtis Rourke on the reserve/NFI list, leaving him unavailable until at least Week 5 (although he is not expected to play this year while rehabbing offseason ACL surgery). Adrian Martinez is on the team’s practice squad as a depth option, but depending on Purdy’s recovery timeline White could be pursued as a more experienced QB2 candidate.
The 49ers need to take a few more looks at Tom Savage 🙂
Signing a player who couldn’t beat out Mitch Trubisky doesn’t seem like a wise move.
Mike White is not that bad for an available QB this time of year. In his first career start with the Jets, he threw for over 400 yards & beat the Bengals with Joe Burrow in the lineup.
That contract extension sure is paying off..