The benefits of getting a first-round bye in the playoffs are already apparent for San Francisco.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan on Tuesday in a conference call with reporters painted a mostly bright picture of where the team’s injury situation stands ahead of their pair of practices during their week off.
Here are the updates from Shanahan:
TE George Kittle (back)
Kittle missed the regular season finale with back spasms, but Shanahan said he’s doing much better now.
LB Dre Greenlaw (Achilles)
Greenlaw was also out for Week 18 vs. the Rams. Shanahan said the team will be smart with him during the week off while he works through Achilles tendonitis.
DL Arik Armstead (knee, foot)
Armstead is doing good according to the head coach, and he’s on track to play in the divisional round. Shanahan indicated Armstead would’ve given it a go had the team needed to win in the season finale. The veteran DL has missed the last five games.
RB Christian McCaffrey (calf)
The calf injury that kept McCaffrey out vs. the Rams will also keep him out of practice during the bye, but the anticipation is he’ll be available for the postseason.
WR Jauan Jennings (concussion)
Great news here for Jennings. He has cleared concussion protocol and missed the 49ers’ final three games because of that head injury.
OL Jon Feliciano (back)
Feliciano is classified as ‘day-to-day’ with a back issue. He didn’t play in the season finale.
S Ji'Ayir Brown (knee)
Shanahan is hopeful Brown will be back in practice during the bye week after missing two games with a knee issue.
S Tashaun Gipson (quad)
Gipson also missed Week 18 with a quad strain. Shanahan said in the lead up to that game that it was a 7-to-10 day injury. Tuesday he said he expects Gipson to practice during the bye.
CB Ambry Thomas (hand)
Hand surgery pushed Thomas out of the final Rams game, but he’ll be back in action this week.
S George Odum (biceps)
Odum went on IR with a biceps injury after Week 12. It initially sounded like the 49ers would need a deep playoff run to get their special teams ace back, but Shanahan said they’re opening his practice window over the bye week to get him back on the practice field.
DL Clelin Ferrell (knee)
It sounds like Ferrell may be out for the postseason with a knee injury he sustained in the finale. Shanahan did say it’s possible he could return, but he also said the veteran DE will ‘miss a few weeks.’
S Tayler Hawkins (wrist)
Hawkins was injured late against the Rams. The practice squad safety is getting surgery on his wrist.
