The 49ers starting quarterback? Brock Purdy.
And their emergency QB? An injured Brock Purdy.
The famed Mr. Irrelevant left the first quarter of the NFC Championship game between the 49ers and Eagles with an elbow injury. As his 49ers trailed 7-0 early on, the team inserted fourth-string quarterback and well-traveled Josh Johnson, whom they signed in early December after Jimmy Garoppolo’s season-ending foot injury.
After receiving a hit from close range that saw Johnson fall and bang the back of his head, Purdy returned in the third quarter and has thrown a single pass since re-entering, as of early in the fourth quarter. Johnson subsequently was deemed out with a concussion late in the third quarter.
On the Fox broadcast, Kevin Burkhardt and Greg Olsen indicated that the 49ers’ emergency quarterback is star running back Christian McCaffery.
And previously, ESPN reported that the 49ers emergency QB was fullback Kyle Juszczyk.
But instead, the team opted to go with Purdy. The 49ers trailed 31-7 in the fourth.
Purdy was 3-for-3 with 22 yards in the fourth. Johnson completed 7 of 13 passes for 74 yards.