In March, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy went under the knife for a torn UCL he sustained in January against the Philadelphia Eagles. 

The procedure Purdy underwent didn't involve reconstruction. Instead, it was an "internal brace repair," as reported by Yahoo Sports and confirmed by the 49ers. In recent weeks, however, Purdy has progressed to having the external brace on his elbow removed that he was seen wearing in late March. 

The removal of the external brace means Purdy is progressing in the right direction regarding the injured arm. But, it seems that Purdy is not ready to guarantee his return in the 2023 season. He is just taking it "one day at a time."

“Just to be able to get out of the brace, move around more frequently and stuff like that — I know it sounds small, but that’s a big win,” Purdy said to Yahoo Sports over Zoom. “That’s how I look at it: Finding little things like that to be positive about and understand you have what it takes to get back to being yourself on the field.”

Purdy completed 67.1 percent of passes for 1,374 yards, 13 touchdowns, and just four interceptions in the regular season. In slightly more than two postseason games — Purdy tore his UCL in the first quarter of the third game —  he completed 65.1 percent of attempts for 568 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions.

As for when he will be cleared to throw the football again, that is still to be determined. He was told he could start throwing in three months, which would put him in June before picking up a football again. 

So, Purdy is focusing on what he can control: His conditioning. 

“Conditioning and staying in shape and being thankful to sweat,” Purdy said. “Those are all things you sometimes take for granted when you’re healthy, but those are big things to be proud of.”

As for the projected quarterback battle when Purdy does return, he has appreciated the high praise from San Francisco's general manager John Lynch, who recently said that Purdy had "earned the right" to be the team's No. 1 quarterback heading into 2023. 

But the savvy quarterback who often carries himself with the aroma of a veteran doesn't want to make too much of an offseason endorsement, claiming there is still "a lot of work to be done." 

For now, though, Purdy's recipe for success is simple: take everything one day at a time.