Do you know who Austen Pleasants or Charlie Heck are?
Don’t worry about it. Before this week, I didn’t either, and knowing practice-squad-level offensive linemen is my thing.
Either way, we’ll likely hear their names often on Monday Night Football, as one of those newcomers will be protecting 49ers’ quarterback Brock Purdy’s blindside against the Lions. The other might be bookending him at the opposite tackle spot.
But that’s not all, folks. By extrapolating the way the season has gone for the 49ers into Monday, don’t be surprised if we see a third offensive-line newcomer — interior lineman Matt Hennessy — against the Lions.
Yes, a bad situation first turned worse for the 49ers, and now it’s turned downright cruel, with potentially three players who were acquired (on waivers and poached from practice squads) protecting their potentially $60 million man.
And with the 49ers having nothing to play for in the standings, it’s enough to make you wonder if Kyle Shanahan should even bother playing Purdy — or any of the Niners’ other top players, for that matter — this week or next.
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After all, if these next two weeks are, effectively, preseason football for 2025, shouldn’t the 49ers head coach treat them as such?
(As a refresher, Shanahan hates the preseason and would, in an ideal world, not play anyone who could potentially make the 53-man roster.)
This is the first time the 49ers have faced truly meaningless games in years — going back to the pandemic 2020 season — so it’s a fair question.
But I think it should be saved for the season’s final week, when both the Cardinals and 49ers will play a game that both teams would be better off losing.
Yes, so long as there is one team in a game with something to play for in the standings — for the Lions, that’s a shot at the No. 1 seed in the NFC – it’s incumbent on the 49ers to maintain a code of professionalism and put something close to their best out on the field.
So unless you’re injured, you’re going into harm’s way.
“Welcome to the reality of the world,” Shanahan said Thursday. The game might not always mean anything as it releases to the playoffs, but the beauty of the NFL is that every game — no, every snap — is an opportunity to show your worth. “This is your job… Teams all over the league are in this situation. You’ve still got to go out there and perform the same way.”
“You get 17 checks for 17 games.”
And, for the record, Purdy said this week that he’s “100 percent healthy.”
So, yes, he’s playing. And that should remain the case until the Lions open up an insurmountable lead on Monday. (We might not have to wait long.)
Not just because of the code of professionalism or pride but also because there is still something to be gleaned from Purdy’s performance.
As I wrote a few weeks back, the season’s final games would be a referendum on Purdy. The 49ers will sign him this offseason, but how the team and fan base feel about that new contract will be determined by what Purdy has done for the 49ers lately.
I don’t need to tell you that the fan base isn’t too keen on Purdy signing a record-breaking, market-setting deal.
Reaching that standard might never happen — the mere concept of a $60 million quarterback has folks’ heads spinning (even though with recent-season salary-cap growth, it’d be the equivalent of Jimmy Garoppolo’s record-setting contract from 2018).
But Purdy performing at a high level on Monday could sway at least the rational amongst us.
Not only would he be doing that with a makeshift (if that) offensive line and a second-string receiver group (we’ll see if Deebo Samuel shows up again on Monday), but he’d have done it against the kind of defense that has stymied him this entire season.
The way to beat the 49ers and Purdy is to play man coverage and blitz in strange and confusing ways.
The Lions play more man coverage than anyone else in the NFL and have been blitzing like crazy in recent weeks.
It all makes Monday something close to a perfect data point.
Yes, the circumstances are hardly ideal for Purdy, but a $60 million quarterback is expected to smooth at least some of the issues the Niners will face.
And wouldn’t it be good to know if Purdy can beat man-to-man coverage? Monday’s game would leave zero doubt if he flails and be one hell of a negotiating point for him if he succeeds.
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And beyond all of that, the Niners quarterback needs to develop some rhythm, chemistry, and verve with this offense heading into next season. It’s not all his fault that the Niners have regressed to the point where this game is meaningless for San Francisco, but he needs to be part of the solution.
Can he get something going with Ricky Pearsall? Can he keep George Kittle in that deserved first-team All-Pro spot? Can he help buy another year of Deebo Samuel in Niners’ red? Can he help one of these new offensive linemen land a job with the Niners (or another team) next season?
If the risk of injury is deemed too high, then we might as well never practice or play football again. Call the NFL and ESPN and tell them the game is canceled—the Niners can’t win the Super Bowl, so they’re taking their ball and staying home.
Because above everything else, it does comes down to professionalism.
Is this effectively the preseason? Sure.
But you’re not paid for the preseason — you merely earn a per diem for those games.
On Monday night, everyone will receive a handsome check for their services. Even Purdy, the lowly-paid quarterback, will earn close to $60,000 for his work week. That’s enough to pay off two-thirds of one of those new trucks he bought his offensive linemen.
Yes, being in the NFL is a great job, if you can get it.
And the surest way to lose it is to take it for granted.