After the 49ers’ Week 16 matchup with the Miami Dolphins, head coach Kyle Shanahan gave an update on injuries. Aaron Banks, a left guard, will miss the season’s last two games because of an MCL injury. Due to a quad injury, left tackle Jaylon Moore, who has been starting for more than a month in place of Trent Williams, will also miss the next two games. Spencer Burford, who replaced them, is on a day-to-day basis while the team waits for his calf injury MRI. Shanahan had no news regarding Williams. He hadn’t stated, however, what has been clear since William’s injury: that he won’t be making a comeback this season. Williams’ ankle “hasn’t been able to improve to get him out there, and that won’t be possible,” Shanahan stated.hasn’t been able to improve to get him out there, and that won’t change these next two weeks, especially with the situation we’re in.”
In light of numerous injuries, the 49ers may need to switch one of the guards on the roster to tackle: “We’ve brought in a couple of practice squad guys recently.” We’ll also need to decide on potential guards when you reach this stage, when you’re really low. Security Linebacker Dee Winters (chest) and Ji’Ayir Brown (ankle) are regulars. We probably won’t see Dre Greenlaw again. Due to calf pain, Greenlaw only played four snaps in the Dolphins’ game and was unable to return. Shanahan talked about Greenlaw for a long time, describing his comeback as “inspiring” after witnessing what Dre has endured:
“My gut is most likely that he’ll end up being shut down. I have to wait to talk to Dre on that to see how he’s doing. That’s a decision I’ll leave up to Dre, depending on how his health is.”
Greenlaw’s teammates, specifically Fred Warner, have been outspoken about saving Greenlaw from himself. Shanahan mentioned how Dre was “pretty emotional” when the team told him he wasn’t going back out after the first series
Here’s Kyle’s quote talking about the fine line of playing Greenlaw and saving him from himself:
That’s what we did on play 4. It’s also in Dre’s best interest to get out there and play. He told me he’ll be good next week [After the Rams game in Week 15]. That’s how bad he wants to go. But by no means doing it at the expense of next year. Dre understands. His passion and heart want to be out there.”
Running back Isaac Guerendo will return to practice Thursday after Christmas. Shanahan said Guerendo remains day-to-day but is “trending in the right direction.”
