NFC Notes: Brock Purdy, Mike LaFleur, 49ers, Rams, Seahawks

49ers 

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said that if that QB Brock Purdy continues progressing in his recovery as he has been, he could be in line to start week 1 or shortly after for San Francisco.

“What this means is he now has a three-month time where he’s got to start throwing and then get to a point where he is regularly throwing without issue,” Rapoport said, via Niners Wire. “This should be right before the start of the season, probably early early September where he should be around 100 percent. This is all very good news. So if that is the case, if he’s throwing this week – and hopefully he has no setbacks – if this continues to be the case then you are looking at realistically he could maybe start Week 1. Or if not Week 1, pretty shortly thereafter.”

Rapoport added that the team has options behind center regardless of how Purdy’s rehabilitation process progresses.

“If someone like Sam Darnold, or maybe I guess Trey Lance, if one of those guys starts a week or two, that’s also fine,” Rapoport said. “Because the most important thing for the Niners is that someone who they believe to be a massive, massive part of their future is fully healthy with no issue. This is probably going about as well as they could’ve hoped after the surgery.”

Rams

Rams HC Sean McVay said new OC Mike LaFleur has a “great lens” for the game and has a good pedigree through his time with the 49ers, Falcons, Browns, and Jets. 

“Mike sees the game through a great lens. He’s super smart. You can feel when you’ve led and you’ve been in the situations that he’s been in, whether it be in San Francisco, Atlanta prior to that, even Cleveland or with the Jets,” McVay said, via RamsWire. “He’s got a great ability to understand the game from an all-22 perspective. He’s a great communicator. He and Matthew established a real quick rapport. Mike’s a hard guy not to like.”

Seahawks

Seahawks HC Pete Carroll said they still plan on being aggressive on kickoff returns despite the recent rule change for fair catches within the 25-yard line. 

“We’re going to compete with it,” Carroll said, via ProFootballTalk. “We’re going to use it to our advantage. We’re pretty good in those areas. We like to think we’re a good return team and we can make things happen. It’ll depend. I think you’ll see an effect during the course of the season as the weather changes and stuff like that. I don’t think it’s going to be that dramatic a change. I think teams are going to want to compete and want to bring the ball out. That’s really all it is, if you’re going to take it to the 25 or not. We’ll compete with it, and see how we look, and see if our core group can continue to give us good work like we’ve always counted on. I’m not thinking we’re taking a knee on everything now. We’re going to be very aggressive about it.”



Carroll doesn’t like the new rule change and feels there are other areas the NFL could improve to prevent injuries. 

“I didn’t like the change,” Carroll said. “Worrying about the game a little bit, but the other side of it is worrying about the rest of it too. There’s some numbers that maybe we can change and help some people not be injured. It’s really hard to not look in that direction and support it. We’ve got to support our guys and take care of them. That’s the way we voted. But I was battling. We worked really hard at it. I spent a lot of time on the phone with the guys at the league and with our guys in getting our minds set on how to do it and how we take advantage of it, one way or the other and all of that, and make the most of it. But it’ll be all right. You won’t even know. You won’t even notice there’s a difference.”