The San Francisco 49ers can bring two more players back from the injured reserve list. They remain hopeful that one of those players will be defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw, who has not played since Week 3 due to a knee injury. The only other player currently on the injured reserve list is running back Elijah Mitchell, who suffered an MCL sprain in Week 12.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan spoke with reporters via a conference call on Monday and was asked about the timeline for his third-year defensive lineman's return.
"Yeah, our goal was after the Seattle game to hopefully get him back in practice," Shanahan said of Kinlaw. "That was our goal with it. We'll finish this game up, and we'll see how it is when we come out on Monday, whether we start opening up his window or not."
Once the practice window is opened, the 49ers will have 21 days to activate Kinlaw off the injured reserve list. He will return to the injured reserve list and be done for the season if they don't.
After the game on Thursday night against the Seahawks, the 49ers will host the Washington Commanders and then travel to face the Las Vegas Raiders. Finally, they will close the regular season by hosting the Arizona Cardinals.
Having a healthy Kinlaw for the playoffs could make the league's top-ranked defense even better and power a potential Super Bowl run.