It sounds like the 49ers will watch this trade deadline from the sideline, but San Francisco is still set to receive a substantial boost over the coming weeks.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan said Monday that he’d be surprised if the 49ers made a move before the 1 p.m. trade deadline on Tuesday.
“I’d be surprised if we did,” Shanahan said. “We’re open for stuff that we think could help us now but we don’t want to do that that expense of hurting us in the future and there are a lot of things that go into it. So I won’t say never, but I’d be surprised if something happened.”
That reflects the fact that the 49ers, at 3-4 with two upcoming division games against 7-1 opponents in the Cardinals and Rams, are sort of in no-man’s land.
They’ve mortgaged their future on Trey Lance, but haven’t given Lance the keys to the starting job yet, while Jimmy Garoppolo hasn’t done too much convincing that he’s going to be impactful enough for the 49ers to re-establish themselves as a contender down the stretch.
Without proof that this team is going to truly compete, it checks out that San Francisco — especially with a number of players about to return — will be a bystander at this trade deadline, especially after watching some early-season corner moves pass them by, and seeming fine with it.
The upshot here is that multiple players are set to return.
Jeff Wilson Jr. (meniscus, PUP), George Kittle (calf, IR), Robbie Gould (groin, IR) are all expected to have their three-week practice windows opened this week. Linebacker Dre Greenlaw (core injury) has an opportunity to have his window opened, but Shanahan indicated there are a few benchmarks he’ll need to clear first.
Both Dee Ford and Azeez Al-Shaair, who have been working through the concussion protocol, are also expected to return this week.
As for the rest of the injuries, there is nothing that appears too serious, assuming Elijah Mitchell can play Sunday. Jimmie Ward appears like he’ll be able to avoid injured reserve, but is likely to miss this week.
Injuries:
- Elijah Mitchell (ribs), will be limited this week
- Trent Williams (ankle, elbow), will be managed like last week
- Deebo Samuel (calf), same as Trent
- Kai Nacu (hamstring), out multiple weeks
- Jimmie Ward (grade 1 quad strain) 1-2 weeks, outside chance he can play this week, but not likely. Means that only Tavon Wilson, Talanoa Hufanga are healthy at safety this week. Tony Jefferson is likely to get a bump from practice squad