Will McCaffrey, Deebo, Williams play? 'Lot to factor in,' 49ers GM says
Monday night is nearing and the 49ers still aren't sure -- or at least not saying publicly -- if running back Christian McCaffrey, wide receiver Deebo Samuel and left tackle Trent Williams will play against the Vikings.
None of them practiced again on Friday. What's that mean for Monday?
"I don't know what to be as of yet," 49ers general manager John Lynch said Friday on KNBR's Murph and Mac show. "I think [head coach Kyle Shanahan] characterized all those guys, Christian, Deebo, and Trent, as day-to-day, and I think that's truly where they are."
If any of them miss the game it'll be a huge bonus to Minnesota as the Vikings look to win and get to 3-4. A win would perhaps delay the idea of hitting the sell button before the Oct. 31 trade deadline, while a loss would drop them to 2-5 and sour the possibility of making a run to the postseason.
Lynch did hint that the 49ers aren't going to rush any player back from injury.
“We always have to have their health and safety at our primary concern, always will, and make sure that they’re safe being out there,” Lynch said. “So a lot to factor in, and we’ll just kind of let that continue to play out. But I know they’re all doing their best to get back out there for their team.”
Officially, the 49ers had McCaffrey, Samuel, Williams, linebacker Dre Greenlaw and left guard Aaron Banks, all of whom are starters, sit out Friday's practice.
Meanwhile, the Vikings' injury report on Friday makes it unlikely that Ezra Cleveland will be starting at left guard as he missed a second straight day of practice with a foot injury. If he can't go, Dalton Risner would likely start in his place.
Cornerback Akayleb Evans (oblique), edge rusher Pat Jones II (shoulder) and wide receiver Jalen Nailor (hamstring) were all limited in Friday's practice.
Title: Bring Me The Sports co-owner, editor Email: joe@bringmethenews.com Twitter: @JoeBMTN Education: Southwest Minnesota State University Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota Expertise: All things Minnesota sports Nelson has covered Minnesota sports for two decades, starting his media career in sports radio. He worked at small market Minnesota stations in Marshall and St. Cloud before joining one of the nation's highest-rated sports stations, KFAN-FM 100.3 in the Twin Cities. There, he was the producer of the top-rated mid-morning sports show with Minnesota Vikings announcer Paul Allen. His radio experience helped blossom a career as a sports writer, joining Minneapolis-based Bring Me The News in 2011. Nelson and Adam Uren became co-owners of Bring Me The News in 2018 and have since more than tripled the site's traffic and launched Bring Me The Sports in cooperation with the Sports Illustrated/FanNation umbrella. Nelson has covered the Super Bowl and numerous training camps, NFL combines, the MLB All-Star Game and Minnesota playoff games, in addition to the day-to-day happenings on and off the field of play. Nelson also has extensive knowledge of non-sports subjects, including news and weather. He works closely with Bring Me The News meteorologist Sven Sundgaard to produce a bevy of weather and climate information for Minnesota readers. Nelson helped launch and manage the Bring Me The News Radio Network, which provided more than 50 radio stations around Minnesota with daily news, sports and weather reports from 2011-17.