Pass rusher Dee Ford was inactive for the San Francisco 49ers' final three games of the regular season. He is listed as "questionable" for Saturday's Divisional Round playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings, but the coaches remain hopeful the defender will be available. That may be a game-time decision, though, depending on how Ford feels on Saturday.
Ford suffered a hamstring injury during a Week 11 contest against the Arizona Cardinals. He returned and re-aggravated the injury during the Week 14 win over the New Orleans Saints. That was the last time we saw Ford on the football field.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan spoke with reporters on Thursday and explained that the team took a more cautious approach this time in Ford's return from injury. After all, the team knows what kind of impact his presence makes on defense.
Shanahan admitted the team did wait longer, this time around, to bring Ford back to the fold.
"We're trying to be smarter about it — I didn't know if that's the right word — and I think Dee is also," Shanahan said. "It's tough for athletes in these situations. They want to play no matter what. When we look back at New Orleans, I think Dee was a little bit tight before the game, but it's a little tight. He knows how much we're counting on him to go out, so he's not going to come up and say, 'Hey Coach, I'm a little tight.' No one totally knows."
Ford recorded 14 tackles, 6.5 sacks, a pass defensed, and two forced fumbles in the 49ers' first 11 games of the season before the initial injury.
"He thought he could go, and the way Dee Ford comes off the ball, it was the fourth play of the game, he came off hard and tweaks his hamstring again," Shanahan continued. "Now we can look back, and Dee can learn from that, and I can learn from that, too, that if, I hope Dee, he feels that tight, he can come tell me, and now I know from that history of what happened in New Orleans. 'Oh, you're feeling like that? Well, I know what that means.' Then we have to make that decision if we want to make that gamble or not."
The entire defense will benefit if Ford can return and play at his typically-high level. One teammate who is excited to get the veteran pass rusher back is the player on the opposite side of the defensive line, rookie Nick Bosa.
"Having an extra pass-rusher always helps," Bosa told reporters this week. "Get more one-on-ones, get the slide two. Opens up stuff for the interior guys, as well. Probably see them start to get more opportunities with Dee on the field, too. It's not just me. It's just great to have another good pass-rusher on the field."
Bosa didn't sound too concerned about Ford's ability to be smart in his return to the football field.
"Dee is a vet," Bosa explained. "He knows how to take care of his body, how to come back from stuff. He knows when is the most important time for him to be healthy. Obviously, he's had some setbacks, which is pretty disheartening for anybody trying to play. But the fact that he's feeling great now is all that we could ask for."