The 49ers on Saturday got a pair of victories. They beat the Commanders 37-20 on Christmas Eve to move to 11-4 on the season. Their second win of the day was in the training room where they didn’t sustain any injuries during the contest.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan indicated Saturday after the game the team didn’t have any injury issues during the game, and he re-affirmed that Monday in a conference call with reporters.
While there were no updates from Week 16, Shanahan did provide some on a few key 49ers who are dealing with various ailments not from Saturday’s game.
QB Jimmy Garoppolo (foot)
Garoppolo had the hard cast removed from the broken left foot he sustained against the Dolphins in Week 13. He’s progressing in his recovery, but it’s still a long shot that he’d be available for the 49ers during the postseason. San Francisco didn’t place him on IR though so there won’t be any roster maneuvering necessary if Garoppolo does get healthy enough to play in the postseason.
WR Deebo Samuel (knee, ankle)
There’s still a question mark around whether the 49ers will even want to bring Samuel back in the regular season if he’s ready. Shanahan on Monday said Samuel could return to practice later in the week for Week 17, which could conceivably put him on track to play in Week 18. Regardless of whether he suits up for any of the final two regular-season contests, all signs point to the 49ers having their do-everything WR for the start of the postseason in mid-January.
RB Elijah Mitchell (knee)
There’s a chance Mitchell’s 21-day practice window is opened as early as Friday. That would give the 49ers until the Friday before the divisional playoffs before they were forced to activate their injured RB. He’s like Samuel in that even if he’s available for the regular-season finale, the club may want to sit him out in favor of ensuring his health for the playoffs. The fact he’s progressing well enough to possibly practice in Week 17 is a great sign for the 49ers.
DL Hassan Ridgeway (chest)
The 49ers have one IR activation left for the 2022 season, and it sounds like they’ll use it on Mitchell, who’s progressed further in his injury recovery than Ridgeway, who was injured in Week 13 against the Dolphins. If Mitchell is activated, Ridgeway’s season would officially be over.
