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49ers plan to activate linebacker Kwon Alexander ahead of playoff game vs. Vikings
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It's the worst kept secret in Santa Clara. The San Francisco 49ers plan to activate linebacker Kwon Alexander off of injured reserve before Saturday's playoff bout with the Minnesota Vikings. Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area on Thursday
confirmed that to be the plan.
His exact role in the game hasn't been revealed, and it is unlikely the 49ers will do so before the defense lines up for its first snap of the game.
"I know Kwon will fly around," head coach Kyle Shanahan told NBC Sports Bay Area. "He'll hit. He'll be energetic. He'll get everyone going. I think everyone will feel his energy on the field. And we'll see how it goes.
"We're not going to throw him out there, just down-in and down-out. But we don't have a plan, where it's only going to be 'this' amount. He's looked good in practice, but we're also not laying people out in practice."
Alexander suffered a torn pectoral muscle, an injury that typically requires around six months of recovery, on October 31, 2019. A little over two months later, the linebacker is prepping for his return to the football field.
San Francisco opened the practice window for Alexander last week.
Rookie
Dre Greenlaw has been filling in for Alexander during his absence and has been playing well while doing so. That makes it easy for the 49ers to ease Alexander back into the game and not force him to take on a heavy workload.
"Dre Greenlaw has done such a good job over the course of the year," defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said on Wednesday. "Still want to make sure he's included in the game plan and all that stuff. But again, there's still a couple more hurdles that Kwon also has to go through. Want to make sure Dre is fully involved also."
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