Brock Purdy looks to be on good track to return from his toe injury for the 49ers in their next game Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Purdy, who has missed the past two games, was a notably more active participant in Wednesday’s practice than he was over three sessions last week.
“He’s better today than he was on Sunday,” 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said. “Hopefully, that will keep continuing.”
San Francisco’s quarterback seemed jovial on the practice field, even working with running back Brian Robinson Jr. on a customized handshake.
Expect to see more of those this weekend between receivers Ricky Pearsall and Kendrick Bourne, whose elaborate handshake lit up the 49ers’ warmup session before their Week 3 win over the Arizona Cardinals.
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“I saw the energy that he was dancing to practice — he was dancing everywhere,” Pearsall said in the locker room Wednesday. “I kind of like doing that, too. So it was a really easy handshake that we made.”
Pearsall said he has customized greetings rehearsed with fullback Kyle Juszczyk, fellow wideout Jacob Cowing, and receivers coach Leonard Hankerson.
“And I’m trying to get one with Kyle,” Pearsall said, referring to Shanahan. “We’ll see how that goes.”
Pearsall did not practice Wednesday due to knee soreness he experienced following Sunday’s game, but the second-year wideout — who’s third in the NFL with 281 receiving yards so far — was moving quickly while conditioning work with Christian McCaffrey, who had a vet day off.
“It’s feeling good,” Pearsall said. “I actually don’t know when I hurt my knee during the game. I’m not really concerned about it. If there was a game today, I’d play.”
Outside of Pearsall and McCaffrey, the 49ers haven’t been great offensively during their 3-0 start. But the unit, which is ranked No. 13 in expected points added per play, will get key reinforcements this week. One is probably Purdy. Another is veteran receiver Demarcus Robinson, who returned to practice Wednesday after serving his three-game suspension following a DUI arrest when he was with the Los Angeles Rams last season.
Receiver Jauan Jennings, who missed last week with an ankle injury, also has a chance to return for the 49ers — although he did not practice Wednesday.
The 49ers are looking to increase their explosive play rate, which is languishing at 7.8% — No. 24 in the NFL. More top-line weapons should translate to more operating room downfield. Thankfully for the 49ers, both McCaffrey — who’s on pace for 1,200 receiving yards — and Pearsall have maximized limited opportunities so far.
In fact, 267 of Pearsall’s 298 receiving yards have come in contested situations — NFL Next Gen Stats defines these as when a defender is within three yards of the receiver. That’s the highest rate in the league.
The 2-1 Jaguars will bring the NFL’s second-ranked defense by EPA to Levi’s Stadium. No, Jacksonville hasn’t faced a Murderer’s Row of quarterbacks — Carolina’s Bryce Young, Cincinnati’s Jake Browing, and Houston’s C.J. Stroud have taken the majority of snaps against them — but the Jaguars are leading the league with seven interceptions. (The 49ers, by comparison, haven’t notched a pick since November.)
“Real good defense,” Shanahan said. “They’re talented. They’ve got a real good scheme. I have a lot of respect for [defensive coordinator] Anthony [Campanile]. They’re playing extremely hard. They know how to get after the quarterback. They have very sound coverages, and when they’re ahead of the chains, they put the pressure on the quarterback and have been very opportunistic with turnovers in that way.”
Jacksonville’s strong pass rush features defensive lineman Arik Armstead, who should be motivated in his first return to Levi’s Stadium after spending nine seasons with the 49ers.
Armstead rushes from both the outside and inside, so he’ll likely see work against the 49ers’ young guards who struggled against Arizona — Connor Colby and Dominick Puni — and the team’s veteran offensive tackles. Trent Williams and Colton McKivitz should also take plenty of reps against Jaguars edge rushers Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker.
On the other side, the 49ers will confront Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence without Nick Bosa, who’s done for the season after tearing his ACL on Sunday.
The 49ers made their first moves in reaction to that Wednesday, promoting edge rusher Robert Beal Jr. to the 53-man roster and signing William Bradley-King to take his spot on the practice squad.
A splashier transaction may happen later. There is still plenty of time before the Nov. 5 trade deadline. For now, the 49ers will gauge exactly how powerfully they can punch without Bosa and determine the best path forward based on that.
“I’m not going to sit here and say something to make it better,” Shanahan said. “Everyone knows the deal, so we’ve got to focus on what we’ve got to get done.”