Your daily San Francisco 49ers news for Friday, December 22nd, 2023
“I’m the type of person that keeps my expectations so low, so I didn’t even think Brock was going to get drafted, if I’m being honest,” Haliburton said. “But I didn’t think any of it because I know him as a person and I knew he’ll be fine, he’ll figure it out. But to see his name get called, I was so, so excited for him. I texted him right away. I was very excited for him to be with the Niners, and then it was just a matter of, ‘Man, I need to see my boy play, I need to see my boy play.’ Now all that he’s doing, it’s so, so cool to see.”
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“In a world that’s so me-me-me, I think what he was and the football program as a whole at Iowa State, and I think Brock led that, was just give all the glory to God, give all the glory to his teammates,” Haliburton said. “Now he’s doing what he’s doing, and he’s talented himself but understands that it’s not possible without the other guys.
“I always try to get Brock to talk big about himself, but that’s just not in his DNA. He’s not that type of guy. He’s not a self-centered or arrogant person at all. I think he really understands the essence of team. You could probably ask all his teammates in that locker room, that’s definitely what they love about him. Brock goes to games wearing a T-shirt and jeans and a Levi’s jacket and some boots or something. He’s not ever going to be all flash. He’s about his business, and I really like that about him.”
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The two share their experiences via text and phone calls. But Purdy and Haliburton haven’t really had time to sit down together over a meal and let the combined moment sink in. The last time the Pacers were in San Francisco was Dec. 5 of last year … which happened to be the day after Purdy had to sub in after Jimmy Garoppolo broke his foot in the first quarter and take over as the starting QB for the rest of the season. So the Purdy era began for the 49ers when his Iowa State peer was just 50 miles away. How’s that for cosmic symmetry?
“I was hurt, but he had just got the starting the job,” Haliburton recalled. “And I texted him, ‘Yo, you coming tonight, let’s go get dinner!’ And he was like, ‘Yo, Coach has told me I probably shouldn’t. I should get into the playbook and be ready to go because I’m starting now.’ So we didn’t get to do anything.”
49ers injury report: Armstead, Hargrave miss Thursday practice
“Cornerback Deommodore Lenoir, who was listed as day-to-day this week with bruised ribs, was no longer among the players Shanahan listed with injuries.”
Branch: For 49ers against Ravens, motivation not an issue, but injuries might be (paywall)
“Obviously, everyone is grinding this time of year,” Bosa said. “You feel different each week. There’s definitely a few plays last week that we’d like to have back and it would have looked better in the stat sheet. We watched the tape and we don’t feel it was bad as the stat sheet says.”
Could 49ers’ Brock Purdy, Christian McCaffrey split the MVP? Analyzing their cases (paywall)
“That MVP and Offensive Player of the Year combination might be the likeliest outcome this season for Purdy and McCaffrey, a pair of teammates who are both primary drivers of such a high-flying 49ers offense.
And it must be noted that a tie for the MVP, as was the case in 1997 (between Favre and Sanders) and in 2003 (between Manning and Tennessee Titans QB Steve McNair) is also technically possible. It’s an unlikely outcome, of course, since it’d require an exact split of the vote between Purdy and McCaffrey.
But wouldn’t that be something?”
49ers to add DL depth with veteran DT Taylor Stallworth on practice squad
“Stallworth since debuting with the Saints in 2018 has played in 58 games with two starts. He’s seen time on the field with New Orleans, Indianapolis, Houston, Kansas City and Tennessee. In his 58 games he has 52 tackles, seven tackles for loss, 14 QB hits and 4.5 sacks.
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