The 49ers had started practice Monday afternoon, but a group of photographers had their lenses pointed away from action on the field.
They were waiting for an image that never developed - the sight of former NFL quarterback Daunte Culpepper opening the locker-room doors and stepping onto the field in a red-and-gold uniform.
Culpepper worked out at the team's facility in Santa Clara on Monday morning but did not sign with the Niners, who appear to be in dire need of a veteran backup. Alex Smith, entering his seventh season, is the only quarterback on the roster who has taken a regular-season snap.
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