More than two weeks after injuring his calf and exiting in the second half against the Seattle Seahawks, 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo has returned to practice.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan said last week that Garoppolo — who he affirmed as the starter — was going to “give it a go” in the Friday practice prior to the 49ers’ 17-10 loss to the Arizona Cardinals, but he did not.
His return to practice this week was expected, as was the return of nickel corner K’Waun Williams, who also came back following a calf injury which sidelined him since the Week 3 loss to Green Bay.
Rookie quarterback Trey Lance, though, did not practice. He sustained a knee sprain against the Cardinals, which was expected to be a one-to-two-week injury. Shanahan won’t provide injury updates until this Wednesday, when Lance will have his next opportunity to practice.
Also returning to practice was running back JaMycal Hasty (calf, injured reserve), who’s been out since Week 2. Shanahan said at the end of the bye week that there was a “possible chance” for Hasty to return, and the 49ers have now opened his practice return window. That window will stay open for the next three weeks, allowing Hasty to practice and be activated at any point in the next three weeks.
Shanahan also said last week that linebacker Dre Greenlaw (core/groin, injured reserve) had an “outside chance” to return this week, but was more likely to return over the following two weeks.
Linebacker Marcell Harris also suffered a broken right thumb which required surgery. Shanahan had said he “should be good to go” this week, but he did not practice Monday.
With those concerns at linebacker, San Francisco reportedly signed veteran linebacker Mychal Kendricks, who was at the team’s practice facility on Monday, but is waiting to clear COVID-19 testing before the team makes the signing official.