San Francisco 49ers general manager John Lynch joined KNBR on Friday morning for his regularly-scheduled interview and provided several injury updates on key players.
The biggest name on the list is the 49ers' Pro Bowl tight end, George Kittle, who is working his way back from knee and ankle injuries sustained during Week 9 against the Arizona Cardinals. On Thursday, Kittle got back on the practice field for the first time since his injuries, but was limited to warmups and individual drills and wore a blue non-contact jersey.
"George did a nice job in individual, just a very limited basis," Lynch said on the "Murph and Mac" show. "You guys know, Kittle, not only is he a fantastic talent and a complete football player, but he brings a certain energy to our team, so even having him out there yesterday, you could feel that juice. There's something special about having George out there."
Kittle is expected to be a game-day decision, and head coach Kyle Shanahan said on Thursday that the tight end is expected to be limited again during Friday's practice.
Lynch and company plan to speak with the trainers, though, and see if Kittle's Friday workload can be ramped up a bit.
"We need George for the long-haul, but it certainly would be nice to have him this week," Lynch added. "I can't say 'hopeful,' but it was an encouraging sign that he was out on the field yesterday."
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Wide receiver Deebo Samuel suffered a shoulder injury against the Cardinals, left the game but returned in time to help in the 49ers' late comeback victory. While Shanahan wasn't willing to share too many details about the injury this week, Lynch provided some additional information on the specifics while discussing the statuses of the rookie and veteran wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders.
"They both were limited yesterday," Lynch said. "Both very sore. I can tell you Emmanuel is probably better off than he was this time last week, so that's a good thing. I can't tell you how much I admire his toughness. He's kind of an old-school player."
Added Lynch: "I think Deebo is cut from the same mold. He hurt his shoulder, the AC joint, and those are painful, but you can play through them."
Then you have running back Matt Breida, who aggravated his ankle during Week 10 against the Seattle Seahawks and did not play against the Cardinals.
"I think we've seen with Matt over the years, you look at players' history, and when he's been banged up, sometimes it's led to a situation where he can play, but he is continually having to come out with things," Lynch said. "I think we're trying to just get him healthy because when he's healthy, he's a dynamic back. When compromised, he's a smaller guy, and it's tough for him to play effectively.
"So we want to get him fully healthy. I think that's been our focus and the word from the docs? A couple of weeks would help.
"It may be a situation where we get him, but I think the good thing is, as you've seen, we're very deep at running back with Tevin (Coleman), with Raheem (Mostert), who's playing at a high level for us, and then with Jeff Wilson."
You can listen to the entire conversation with Lynch below.