Brock Purdy Still has a Chance to Start for the 49ers Against the Bengals

49ers quarterback Brock Purdy is in the concussion protocol, but that doesn't mean he will surely be inactive against the Bengals.

49ers quarterback Brock Purdy is in the concussion protocol. 

Head coach Kyle Shanahan broke the news Wednesday at his press conference, so Purdy will be out of practice until his symptoms are gone. This means backup Sam Darnold would get the start if Purdy remains in the protocol throughout the week.

However, I wouldn't be so quick as to rule Purdy out. He still has a chance to start for the 49ers against the Bengals. For all we know, his symptoms could start to alleviate on Thursday, and then he makes it for practice on Friday. 

Even if he does miss practice all week, he will still have a chance. Missing a week of practice and playing a game is nothing new to Purdy. He did that last year when the 49ers faced the Seahawks in a pivotal NFC West division clinching game. 

"Brock didn't take a practice versus Seattle in Thursday Night football until pre-game warmups and he had to shut those down a little bit too. So he didn't really get a real rep that week until play one and he played pretty good. So, we'll probably stick with that," Shanahan said.

Knowing how Shanahan operates, he'll give Purdy up until the very end to start. And if it appears he isn't getting any better, then he will do it for the sake of throwing the Bengals off with their preparation. It is what he did last week against the Vikings when he revealed late in the week about Deebo Samuel's injury. So, Purdy still very well can play in this game. No one should be penciling in Darnold quite yet. 

As it turns out, over the last few years, roughly 25 percent of players who suffer a concussion will return to play the following week (when game is 6-7 days away), per the NFL. So far this season, several players have returned for the next game. Passing through protocol is…

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 25, 2023

Purdy, however, is up against the odds. Only 25 percent (roughly) of players play in the same week that they are in the concussion protocol. And for Purdy, he sustained his injury on Monday. He has one less day for his symptoms to rescind. This is going to be yet another week where the 49ers are day-to-day with their injured players.