Brock Purdy has undergone successful surgery to repair a torn elbow ligament, the San Francisco 49ers have announced.
Purdy suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) on the first offensive series of San Francisco's NFC Championship Game defeat to the Philadelphia Eagles. That injury, followed by the concussion suffered by backup Josh Johnson, left the Niners without a recognised quarterback for the second half of a 31-7 loss.
Prior to that, Purdy had improbably emerged as a star for the Niners.
The last pick in the 2022 draft, Purdy took over from the injured Jimmy Garoppolo – who had previously stepped in after Trey Lance suffered a season-ending ankle injury – in the Week 13 win over the Miami Dolphins and subsequently led the 49ers to further five wins as starter to end the regular season before helping them prevail in a pair of playoff games as the second seed in the NFC.
His surgery had been delayed because of inflammation, but he underwent the procedure on Friday and is expected to resume throwing in three months.
A brief statement from the 49ers read: "San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy underwent successful surgery with renowned specialist Dr. Keith Meister this morning.
"Dr. Meister conducted an internal brace repair to Purdy's right elbow. Purdy is anticipated to start a throwing progression program in three months."
Purdy's timeline sets the stage for a potential training camp battle with Lance, the third overall pick in 2021. San Francisco traded three first-round picks to the Miami Dolphins for the right to move up and acquire Lance.
Robbed of his first season as the starter by injury, Lance has started just four games as an NFL quarterback, having only had one full season of experience in college with North Dakota State at the FCS level, college football's second tier below the FBS.
Purdy, by contrast, started 48 FBS games for Iowa State and, after completing 67.1 per cent of his passes for 13 touchdowns and four interceptions as a rookie, will likely be seen as the favourite to win the starting job if his recovery goes to plan.