San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy will sit out Thursday’s Week 5 matchup with the Los Angeles Rams after re-aggravating an existing toe injury.
Wide receivers Ricky Pearsall, Jauan Jennings and Jordan Watkins have also been ruled out for Week 5, per NBC Sports’ Matt Maiocco.
Backup quarterback Mac Jones will likely be set to start when the 49ers kick off against the Rams on Thursday at 8:15 p.m. ET.
Purdy sat out a Week 2 win over the New Orleans Saints and Week 3 victory over the Arizona Cardinals after suffering a left shoulder injury and toe injury during the 49ers’ season-opening win over the Seattle Seahawks.
Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters Purdy’s toe injury was the main reason the quarterback was sidelined for those two games.
Purdy came back for the 49ers’ Week 4 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars last Sunday.
The quarterback threw some highlight-reel passes in his return while going 22-for-38 with 309 yards and two touchdowns, but he also threw two interceptions and lost a fumble.
Shanahan said after the loss he didn’t feel Purdy’s toe factored in to the three turnovers the quarterback committed against the Jags.
The head coach added Monday, however, that Purdy had been “complaining on some soreness with his toe” starting the night after the game.
“I talked to him on the phone last night and he said it was starting to bother him a little bit last night,” Shanahan said Monday, per the team’s official transcript. “But, nothing during the game at all.”
Shanahan added that Purdy’s status was a concern given the quick turnaround before this week’s Thursday night matchup.
“Anytime you have a Thursday game, it’s a totally different element. So yeah, I’m concerned with anybody who’s not totally healthy at this moment,” Shanahan said Monday.
Jones, who started Weeks 2 and 3 while Purdy was initially sidelined by his injuries, was limited in practice with a knee injury ahead of Week 4.
Niners general manager John Lynch said Tuesday on KNBR that Jones was “in a good spot to back up for play” if he was needed to step in for Purdy against the Rams.
With two starting wideouts and their star quarterback sidelined, the 49ers may lean more heavily on Christian McCaffrey and the run game on Thursday against the Rams.
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