SANTA CLARA — As begins, there's no controversy surrounding 's starting quarterback job in late July for the first time in years -- but the backup spot is an entirely different story After to the , the undetermined quarterback heirarchy beyond creates a critical storyline heading into the team's first training camp practice on Wednesday. and -- two veteran signal-callers with considerable NFL experience, enter camp competing to be in the event Purdy is forced to miss any time during the 2024 season. "They'll keep splitting those reps to compete for the two spot," 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said Tuesday.
Given since stepping on an NFL field, the remainder of San Francisco's QB room is an afterthought on the surface. A side dish outshined by the main course that nearly took the 49ers to the promised land in his first full season under center. However, due to recent history, San Francisco doesn't have the luxury of ignoring the harsh reality that befalls NFL franchises when their starting quarterback is taken out of the picture mid-season.
The 49ers learned this lesson the hard way in 2020, with poor play from backup quarterbacks offsetting a heroic effort from San Francisco's defense despite dealing with a catastrophic string of injuries on both sides of the ball. Ever since that brutal 2020 season, the 49ers have gone above and beyond to insulate their quarterback room, which proved to be a franchise-altering decision when Purdy was rostered as the third-string quarterback du.