Just over eight months ago, Brock Purdy was on the operating table as Dr. Keith Meister conducted an internal brace repair of the 49ers quarterback's right elbow.
Now, Purdy is one of the frontrunners to win the 2023 NFL MVP award.
The 23-year-old is heaving dots, as his wide receivers like to put it, all over the field for San Francisco this season, making it impossible to tell he suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his throwing arm less than a year ago. That's because the process -- including a grueling rehab -- helped him improve from last season in more ways than one.
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"It feels really good. It feels strong, it feels fresh again," Purdy said on KNBR's "Murph & Markus" show Tuesday. "Like I said, when you go through the rehab and all that kind of stuff, there's so much emphasis on the ligaments and the small muscles around your elbow. When you're constantly working them, your arm just by nature is going to get stronger. That's just really what it was for me.
"I think it was a great lesson for me just moving forward throughout my career, not just from surgery, but moving forward, I can work and continue to do all of those kinds of workouts on my own to keep my arm strong, to keep it fresh and allow it to keep getting stronger. Honestly, I learned a lot, and I think it's a little bit stronger from where I started on Day 1 in the NFL."
Purdy sustained the elbow injury in January during the NFC Championship Game and underwent surgery on March 10. By the end of July, he was back at practice with his teammates in training camp and exceeded expectations with his rehab, starting against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the season opener.
While the rehab was hard work, Purdy knew what to expect in the time that followed after speaking with former 49er and current Minnesota Vikings quarterback Nick Mullens, who suffered the same injury in 2020 and also had an internal brace procedure.
San Francisco 49ers
Mullens told Purdy that while his elbow might feel odd to start the season, by the halfway point, things should seem back to normal.
"He was right," Purdy told KNBR. "Halfway through the year, my arm feels great now. So, I'm excited about that."
There's plenty for Purdy, the 49ers and the Faithful to look forward to with just four regular-season games remaining. At 10-3, San Francisco currently holds the NFC's No. 1 seed and is in the midst of a five-game winning streak.
Purdy, meanwhile, leads the NFL in passer rating (116.9), QBR (74.2), completion percentage (70.2) and yards per pass attempt (9.9) in his first full season as the 49ers' starter. He's also throwing deep passes more accurately than any other NFL quarterback.
The young signal-caller's coaches and teammates have lauded his attention to detail and studious habits since he joined the 49ers, and those traits certainly played a part in his spectacular return from such a serious injury. During a March conversation on "49ers Talk" with NBC Sports Bay Area's Matt Maiocco, UCSF orthopedic surgeon Dr. Nirav Pandya actually predicted Purdy's surgery and resulting rehab could be a blessing in disguise.
“I think it allows him the opportunity to work on strength, work on the ability to potentially change his mechanics and actually come back stronger,” Dr. Pandya said at the time.
That seems to be the case now, as Purdy continues to defy the odds in nearly every aspect of his career.