49ers' Brock Purdy to miss sixth straight start, could play backup role against Rams

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SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Quarterback Brock Purdy will miss his sixth straight start for the San Francisco 49ers with a toe injury, but could be available in a backup role on Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams.

Purdy has been limited in practice the past few weeks and has gotten some time with the starters. Coach Kyle Shanahan is still waiting to see whether he will feel good enough to suit up in a backup role.

"We’ll see where he is this Saturday compared to a week ago and knowing each week’s a little bit different and seeing how much better he has gotten,” Shanahan said.

Mac Jones will once again get the start in his place for a key division showdown. Jones is 5-2 as a starter this season in place of Purdy, who initially hurt his toe in the season opener and re-injured it in a Week 4 loss to Jacksonville after missing the previous two games.

The 49ers will also once again be without receiver Ricky Pearsall, who will miss his sixth straight game with a knee injury. Shanahan initially hoped Pearsall would miss only a couple of games, but the injury has not healed as fast as the team expected.

“He can run and hit certain speeds, but he hasn’t been able to hit his normal speeds that would allow him to come back,” Shanahan said. "We don’t let people come back until they can hit their normal speeds before they got hurt or it makes them susceptible to injury again. We’re just waiting until he hits those markers.”

The 49ers will get some key players back this week led by defensive end Bryce Huff, who missed the past two games with a hamstring injury. Left guard Ben Bartch will be activated from injured reserve on Saturday for the first time since injuring his ankle in Week 2, but might not start ahead of Spencer Burford.

San Francisco will place rookie defensive end Mykel Williams on IR after he had a season-ending knee injury last week to create an open roster spot for Bartch.

Center Jake Brendel also will be back after missing two games with a hamstring injury.

The 49ers have several players who are questionable for the game, including linebackers Dee Winters (knees) and Tatum Bethune (thigh); and defensive linemen Keion White (groin), Alfred Collins (hip) and Kalia Davis (ankle).

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