NFL Player News

San Francisco general manager John Lynch said Wednesday that Purdy continues to receive opinions on how to proceed with the complete tear of the UCL that he sustained in his right elbow during Sunday's NFC Championship Game loss in Philadelphia, but the most likely scenario is surgery followed by a six-month recovery, Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com reports.

Lynch specifically mentioned the InternalBrace repair, and head coach Kyle Shanahan added Purdy's right throwing arm should return to full strength in time for training camp, per David Lombardi of The Athletic. Shanahan also told Lombardi that the 49ers are comfortable with Trey Lance and Purdy as the team's top two quarterbacks for 2023. Considering Lance's right ankle and fibula are expected to be healed well in advance of the offseason program, he may be able to stave off Purdy once late July rolls around. Having said that, Purdy made a case to hold on to the starting gig next season after going 7-1 during his eight-game run with the job to wrap up the most recent campaign.

Tagovailoa cleared the NFL's five-step concussion protocol Wednesday, and the Dolphins are confident he'll be 100 percent for their upcoming offseason program and the 2023 season, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.

Tagovailoa was diagnosed with two confirmed concussions during the 2022 regular season, and the second one -- which occurred against Green Bay on Christmas Day -- ultimately sidelined him for the remainder of the campaign. In early January, Dolphins general manager Chris Grier said Miami had been told by doctors that Tagovailoa's recent head injuries won't leave him prone to more concussions in the future, so the team feels confident the Alabama product can still be its franchise quarterback moving forward.

Lance (ankle) said Tuesday that he's 3-4 weeks away from being cleared for practice and will be 100 percent for OTAs this summer, Matt Barrows of The Athletic reports.

Lance opened the season as the 49ers' starting quarterback but fractured his fibula and suffered a ligament disruption in his right ankle in Week 2. He was ruled out for the remainder of the campaign and underwent a procedure at the end of December to extract hardware stemming from his initial ankle surgery in September. The 2021 first-round pick remains on track to be healthy for offseason work and the 2023 campaign, which is an encouraging update seeing as Brock Purdy is expected to miss at least six months with a torn UCL in his right elbow and Jimmy Garoppolo is headed toward free agency.

The Bengals signed Browning to a reserve/future contract Tuesday.

Browning spent the entire 2022 campaign on the Bengals' practice squad and was elevated three times, but he's still looking to make his NFL debut. However, he's earned a future contract with Cincinnati for a second straight year and will get to stick around the organization during the offseason. If the Bengals don't re-sign Brandon Allen, Browning could have a chance to win the top backup spot behind Joe Burrow to start the 2023 season.

Purdy is slated for surgery on his right elbow after suffering a complete tear of his UCL during Sunday's NFC Championship Game loss at Philadelphia, and the 49ers hope he'll be healthy by training camp, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.

Purdy took a hit from Eagles pass rusher Haason Reddick in the first quarter while attempting a pass, which officially was ruled a fumble after review. Afterward, Purdy yielded the offense to Josh Johnson for a good portion of the contest, before the latter suffered a concussion and forced Purdy to be a handoff specialist for the rest of the game due to his inability to complete more than short passes. During his eight-game run as the 49ers' starting quarterback (including playoffs), Purdy completed 67 percent of his passes for 1,667 yards, 14 touchdowns and two interceptions while adding two more scores on the ground. With Jimmy Garoppolo heading for free agency and 2021 first-round pick Trey Lance likely to be healthy for the 49ers' offseason program, Purdy may be behind the eight ball to retain the No. 1 QB gig in San Francisco to begin next season.

Browning reverted to the Bengals' practice squad Monday, per the NFL's transaction log.

Browning was elevated for the final two weeks of the regular season and AFC Championship Game, but he simply operated as an emergency backup option behind Brandon Allen and Joe Burrow. The fourth-year quarterback originally joined the league as an undrafted free agent out of Washington and still is looking to make his NFL debut.

Burrow completed 26 of 41 passes for 270 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions in Sunday's 23-20 AFC Championship Game loss to the Chiefs. He added 30 yards on four rushing attempts.

Burrow threw a game-tying, 27-yard touchdown to Tee Higgins in the third quarter and had the ball with a chance to win it down the stretch, but Kansas City's defense got a crucial third-down stop by sacking Burrow for the fifth time. The Chiefs kicked the winning field goal in the final seconds on their ensuing possession to avenge last season's AFC Championship Game loss to Burrow's Bengals. After throwing for 4,475 yards and a 35:12 TD:INT in the regular season, Burrow added four more touchdown passes, a rushing touchdown and two interceptions in three playoff games.

Mahomes completed 29 of 43 passes for 326 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions during the Chiefs' 23-20 win over the Bengals in Sunday's AFC Championship Game. He also rushed three times for eight yards and lost a fumble.

Mahomes unsurprisingly had a critical role in the Chiefs finally getting over the hump against Joe Burrow's Bengals, not only with his overall stellar day through the air, but even with an otherwise unremarkable five-yard run in his final touch of the contest. The perennial All-Pro quarterback connected with Travis Kelce and Marquez Valdes-Scantling for touchdown passes of 14 and 19 yards, respectively, but it was his decision to pull the ball down and take off on a third-down play with 17 seconds remaining that helped lead to a game-winning 45-yard field goal by Harrison Butker, as he was able to draw an unnecessary roughness penalty on his way out of bounds that gave Kansas City 15 extremely valuable yards. Mahomes now will have two weeks to get further treatment and rest for his gimpy ankle before having to face the Eagles' vaunted, league-best pass rush in Super Bowl LVII, but the health of wide receivers Kadarius Toney (ankle), JuJu Smith-Schuster (knee) and Mecole Hardman (pelvis), who all exited Sunday's game with their respective injuries, also will be integral to Mahomes' overall success in such a difficult matchup.

Hurts completed 15 of 25 passes for 121 yards and added 39 rushing yards and a touchdown on 11 carries in Sunday's 31-7 win over the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game.

What seemed like it would be a fearsome battle turned into a rout after the Niners lost Brock Purdy to an elbow injury early in the game and were forced to turn to journeyman Josh Johnson (concussion) under center. As a result, the Eagles didn't really need to air it out at all, and all four of the team's TDs came on the ground. Hurts picked up one of them on a one-yard run late in the third quarter, but he otherwise didn't need to do too much. The low passing numbers could give rise to questions about the health of his right throwing shoulder, but with two weeks to rest before the Super Bowl, Hurts should be 100 percent as Philly tries to win its second title in six seasons.

Purdy (elbow) suffered an injury to his right elbow early in Sunday's 31-7 NFC Championship Game loss to the Eagles, resulting in four completed passes for 23 yards and one fumble lost.

Purdy technically finished the contest, but only for show after backup Josh Johnson (concussion) was knocked out of the game in the second half. The 23-year-old attempted just two short pass attempts in the second half, as it was apparent that he couldn't throw the ball with his damaged elbow. Purdy will undergo tests Monday to determine the severity of the injury, according to Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area, but the initial belief is that the rookie signal-caller sustained a UCL injury that could require a recovery of at least six weeks, and longer than that if surgery is deemed necessary. Purdy surpassed any expectations anyone had for him this season, finishing with a 7-1 record as a starter with 16 passing touchdowns to three interceptions. If healthy, Purdy could be the leading candidate to start for the 49ers in 2023, though 2021 first-round pick Trey Lance (ankle) should at least get the chance to compete with Purdy for the top spot on the depth chart.