There were a couple surprise inactives for the 49ers on Sunday. Tight end George Kittle and linebacker Dre Greenlaw were both officially active for the 49ers, but both were in street clothes on the sideline at kickoff.
Their absences were due to a couple of minor ailments they were dealing with before the game per head coach Kyle Shanahan.
“No, they definitely were trying to go but Kittle’s having some back spasms,” Shanahan said. “So once that was happening in pregame we shut him down. Dre had some Achilles tendonitis, so that was acting up a little bit more before the game. We had heard about it and once we heard that, we were safe with him.”
While back and Achilles issues are never good, Shanahan did indicate the absences were precautionary.
The team plans to practice a couple days over their bye week. It’s unclear how much Kittle and Greenlaw will participate in those sessions. That Sunday’s absences were precautionary is a sign that both should be available in two weeks for the playoff opener though. And suiting up for that game is far more important than Week 18.
