SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Despite a handful of key players battling injury this week, the San Francisco 49ers did not rule any of them out in advance of Sunday’s NFC wild-card showdown against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Left tackle Trent Williams (right hamstring), receiver Ricky Pearsall (knee, ankle) and linebacker Dee Winters (ankle) are among six Niners on the active roster that the team is listing as questionable for Sunday. Linebacker Luke Gifford (quad), defensive lineman Keion White (groin) and cornerback Renardo Green (foot) are the others.
Not all questionable designations are created equal, however. Williams, who injured his hamstring on the first offensive snap of a Dec. 28 win against the Chicago Bears and didn’t play last week against the Seattle Seahawks, appeared to be trending in the right direction this week.
Williams did not practice on Wednesday but was a limited participant on Thursday and Friday. On the other side of that, Pearsall and Winters did not participate in any of the practices this week. Williams told reporters Friday he will be a game time decision but is “confident” he will play Sunday.
Pearsall was also injured in the Chicago game and did not play against Seattle. Winters sustained his injury against the Seahawks.
Asked whether Pearsall and Winters would have been ruled out for a non-playoff game, Niners coach Kyle Shanahan demurred on Friday afternoon.
“I don’t know,” Shanahan said. “It’s a big hypothetical. Last week wasn’t a playoff game, and I didn’t look at it any different. I would say there’s no difference in last week and this week.”
Like Williams, White also appeared to progress as the week went on. He didn’t practice on Wednesday or Thursday but was limited on Friday. Gifford and Green went the opposite direction as Gifford participated on Wednesday but not Thursday or Friday and Green was added to the injury report Friday with a foot issue.
The uncertainty on the injury front could leave the 49ers particularly thin at linebacker. San Francisco already placed Tatum Bethune, the replacement for middle linebacker Fred Warner (ankle), on injured reserve earlier this week with a torn groin. If Winters and Gifford can’t play, the Niners would likely start veteran Eric Kendricks and Garret Wallow against the Eagles.
Kendricks joined the Niners on Nov. 26 while the team claimed Wallow off waivers on Dec. 8. Veteran linebacker Kyzir White, who signed to the practice squad earlier this week, is also expected to be available with Curtis Robinson the only other healthy option on the active roster. Jalen Graham is another option to be elevated from the practice squad.
Shanahan said the lack of healthy linebackers could force the Niners to make multiple roster moves on Saturday beyond the two standard practice squad elevations.
“Depending on how that goes, we would possibly have to do that,” Shanahan said. “You’re only allowed to have two elevations, so if we needed more than that, we’d have to make a roster move.”
While Shanahan said Monday that a potential Warner return wouldn’t come until the NFC Championship Game at the earliest, Warner was seen doing some work on the side this week for the first time since fracturing his right ankle in Week 6. Shanahan said he hasn’t yet been told that Warner could open his 21-day practice window next week if the Niners were able to beat Philadelphia.
Receiver Jacob Cowing, who opened his practice window this week, is also listed as questionable but will not be activated for Sunday, according to Shanahan.
Now, the 49ers will wait and see how their long flight to Philadelphia goes before making final determinations on their injured players. After playing three games in 13 days, Shanahan said having a full week of preparation plus an extra day (the Niners played Seattle last Saturday), was beneficial.
“I think it really added up,” Shanahan said. “Seeing the players on Wednesday, we all kind of joked that it felt like we just came back from a bye week because it kind of did. It was our first time having a normal routine in about three weeks and just getting away for a little bit. I think guys felt much more rested as the previous three.”
