Brock Purdy "cleared and ready to go" for training camp

And just like that, the 49ers no longer have a quarterback competition.

"Brock's cleared and ready to go," GM John Lynch said at a press conference today, "He's cleared without restrictions. There will be some time off due to pitch count and all that, sticking to the plan, but the great news is Brock has worked his tail off and he's ready to go."

For a team known for their terrible injury history, this is fantastic news.

Think of how incredibly lucky the 49ers have been to this point. First, they got lucky that Brock's UCL was in good enough shape to be repaired rather than replaced. Had the UCL been more severely damaged, Purdy would have required ligament replacement surgery, commonly referred to as Tommy John surgery. That surgery would have ended his season.

Next, the 49ers were lucky that doctors developed a new surgery in the last 10 years that allowed the ligament to be braced while it recovers. Only two other NFL quarterbacks have ever had this surgery, simply because it hasn't existed for very long.

Then the 49ers were lucky that Brock didn't have any setbacks during his rehab process, which has been known to happen in San Francisco on more than one occasion - including in the quarterback room. Trey Lance had to have a second surgery on his ankle after reaching a plateau in his rehab following the initial surgery.

None of that has happened with Brock Purdy. The only caveat Lynch and Kyle Shanahan provided was that Purdy won't throw for three straight days quite yet. That could change in another couple of weeks, but for now that will be his only limitation.

Even worries about Purdy's arm strength appear to be unfounded. "I think it's going to be the same." Kyle Shanahan said. Lynch quickly chimed in with, "I know the data says [the velocity is the same]. They have the GPS wearables these guys all wear these days, and it's good."

So to recap: Brock Purdy suffered a freak injury in the NFC title game against the Eagles. His damaged ligament was healthy enough to undergo a surgery younger than Venmo that's only been done on two other NFL quarterbacks, and his rehab has progressed so well he's cleared for training camp well ahead of the initial injury timeline.

Things are already going the 49ers' way in 2023!