San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan spoke to reporters ahead of Thursday's practice as the team prepares for its Week 17 matchup against the Detroit Lions. Here's everything he said.
Transcript provided by the San Francisco 49ers Communications staff.
Opening comments:
"Alright, injuries for practice today: [OL] Spencer Burford, calf, will not practice, [LB Dre] Greenlaw, calf, will not practice, [OL] Aaron Banks, knee, will not practice, [DL] Robert Beal [Jr.], ankle, will not practice, [S] Ji'Ayir Brown, ankle, limited, [RB Isaac] Guerendo, foot/hamstring, limited. Go ahead."
DL Nick Bosa is good to go?
"Yep."
With Aaron Banks' knee, is that a surgical thing that he'll have to have or will that just heal on its own?
"I can't remember. I know he's got an MCL. I don't remember what they told me a few days ago."
My question is, will it impact him in free agency?
"No, no. If he does, it's minor. He is going to be good in a few weeks they say."
You were waiting for further information on Burford the other day. What did you hear back?
"Nothing real specific. Just that he won't be able to go today and hopefully he will later in the week, but it's going to be tight."
But there's a chance?
"Yeah, there's a chance."
Will you have OL Charlie Heck at tackle, at least for today's practice?
"Possibly. We're going to work him at a bunch of spots, see what he can do. We're going to work him at a couple spots, see what he can do for us. We've got to mix and match a number of guys."
Is there any resolution with Dre for the last two games?
"Yeah, he's not going to play in these two games."
Was he in agreement or did you have to sell him on it?
"He understood. Yeah."
When you're looking at the Lions, preparing for them, their front seven, obviously, it's pretty attrition with injuries as well. How have they survived and how different does their defense look as opposed to that last playoff game?
"Not much different. I've heard about all their injuries, which is a huge credit to them because they've had a ton. But I was expecting it to look a lot worse than it actually does. They're still the number one team in the league on third down. I think they're number six in redzone. The way that they play the run, they've been banged up the most on D-Line and linebacker. But the way they play the run and the way they rush the passer, just individually missing a couple good guys, but collectively they still do it at a very high level. And comparing them to the last year, just their coverage is a lot better. They've added some new guys, drafting a young corner and bringing some guys in there. And so, they're further along on defense than they were last year at this time."
K Jake Moody, obviously, has been inconsistent this season. Does his, some of his struggles, raise any questions about his long-term future, whether he's your guy?
"I still feel the same about him, that I believe he is going to be our guy. Everyone has got to perform and do things like that and I think he has had a tough year. I think before his high ankle sprain, I think he was like, missed one, I think he was 12 of 13 before that. So I thought he was doing really well and then had a high ankle sprain to his kicking foot. Since he's come back, he hasn't been as consistent, obviously. But I think a lot of that probably has to do with that, just common-sense wise. And hopefully he can get to this offseason, heal up and find a stroke again and play at a high level that I think he will, because he's real talented. I think he's made of the right stuff just from a mental standpoint and everything and I think he has all the tools to be a great kicker in the this league. He's still working to find that though."
Is there something to be said for being pushed in training camp for kickers to have that kind of daily competition where every kick there's something riding on it?
"I don't know. Maybe. I think you've got the wrong guy if you have to. You do that when you don't think you're going to have a guy, but when those guys miss too much you go get a new one usually. And that's what's tough about the kicker position. That's what's tough, I remember we were in Washington and we had a young kicker who missed a number of kicks, but I didn't have much experience with kicking then. I remember I kept telling the head coach that he's cost us two games, when are we going to move on from this guy? And he kept telling me how talented he was, 'You've got to be patient.' But then he lost us a third game and then the head coach had to make a move, but two years later that guy was the highest paid kicker in the league and going to Pro Bowls. So he was right, we had to be patient. But how long can you do it? And so, I think that's just what's tough with that position. There are no backups and stuff like that, so that's what the challenge is. But I believe we've got the right guy and I think that eventually, I think he has shown that at times, thought he showed that at times his rookie year. I thought he showed that big time being 12 out of 13 to start this year. And I think he'll show us all that in the future."
How about his emotional state, has he lost his confidence at all?
"No."
In the NFC Championship Game, you saw the Lions going for it on fourth down and it probably worked to your advantage. But when a team is as aggressive as they are in that regard, how does it just change maybe the mindset of what you have to be in terms of how things go defensively?
"It means that they probably have an extra down. It's similar when you go against Philly and how good they are in the tush push. And just understand him when it's third-and-four, that it's almost like it's second-and-four, because they're going to go for it on fourth and anything less than that. Just [Detroit Lions head coach] Dan [Campbell], with how aggressive he's been, you've got to understand that anywhere on the field whether it's trick plays, whether it's going for it, whether it's special teams plays, everything's up. Sometimes it helps, sometimes it hurts. And same thing for the opposing team."
They've been rolling offensively this year. Have you seen him grow even more, he obviously wasn't afraid to do it last year, but even more confident in in those situations?
"I feel like he's been pretty confident in it for a while."
With T Williams' injury, is there any concern that is like a long-term career-threatening thing?
"Not that we've heard of. It's always concerning that it's taken longer to heal than expected. But talking to him, he's seen a number of specialists, he's seen our own guys. So everyone's pretty much on the same page. He just needs some time and it'll heal. So there are really no worries there, but we just wanted it to heal faster."
What do you know about OL Matt Hennessy?
"I know that we liked him coming out of college. He's done a good job there in Atlanta. I was really pumped to get him in this situation at this time."
Looking at QB Brock Purdy and just where he is at this point in the season, how do you feel like his progress has been? Last year his season and his stats were ridiculous and then this year it's been a challenge. Where do you feel like he's at?
"Exactly what you just said. He's in a more challenging situation this year. He's got two more weeks of it. I think it's going to end up being really good for him in the long run. I thought he played at such a high level in some situations last year that some were good and easier, but then some were tough. Just like even both playoff games, some of the situations we were in and him leading us back to end up winning both of those and go to the Super Bowl. I think this year just having a number of his guys down and things like that has been harder on him but usually that stuff can make you better. I think he's fought through it all year. He's got two more weeks to fight through it and hopefully we can still improve in these two weeks and then get to the film in the offseason."
How does he seem emotionally, when you've talked to him one-on-one?
"I think Brock's been good. Brock's a very strong person. I think he's disappointed. He had high expectations this year, just like we all did. I also don't think he hasn't ever been in a losing situation yet. So, I think that's very hard for him. But to watch how he responds each week, to watch how he practices, to watch how he is in the meetings, he's always the same guy and nothing's changed in that way."
How much do you look at these last two weeks with maybe a chance to experiment with anything that you've been thinking about throughout the year or is that not how you look at it?
"That's not how I look at it. I'll experiment with anything if I think it's the right decision, gives our players a chance to be successful. But I don't just experiment with things to experiment with it. It's got to make sense who we're going against, what you're asking someone to do, and if it helps us have a chance to win."
Nick Bosa said after the game this is one of the first times that he hasn't had games where he's played for something and there's a lot of guys that are in the locker room like that as well. How do you kind of manage their mental state, their expectations for these last two names?
"Got to tell them welcome to the reality of the world. I think that's a credit to some of the situations we've been in here the last few years. But that's not the only reason you play. This is your job, you're putting on a 49er uniform. All of us get into this because we want to make that tournament and have a chance to get to a Super Bowl. A lot of our guys haven't been in that situation before, so they're not used to it, but teams all over the league are in this situation. You've still got to go out there perform the same way because once you start thinking that there's not a reason to go out there and play your best that's when you're usually closer to the end than the beginning."
Did you see much of a difference in the team at all to start the week going into this game?
"Not really. I didn't see that much different than last week, also. So, I think we've been in that mindset and understanding that. I see the same situation each week."
With Moody, do you feel like missing kicks, especially for a young kicker is part of the process that ultimately will make them a better kicker, kind of struggling through that?
"You hope so. I think if you have the talent, someone like Jake, I think that's everything. I think the mental part of the game is huge. How you react to these things. I think it's the same thing with quarterbacks. You watch some backup quarterbacks come in for a starter, play really well. They do it for a couple games, then they have their three-pick game and they get killed and then you see how they respond to that. Some guys come back and some guys it kind of breaks and they want to go back to not having as much pressure on them. So, I think that's a huge part of this game with every position. But when it comes to the kicker, since it's such a specialty and a deal that really only they deal with, I think the mental part's as big as anything."
I think 2014 is the only year running backs coach Robert Turner Jr. wasn't with you or your dad. What happened? How come he couldn't come with you to the Browns?
"Because I'm not always in charge of hiring the staff. No one really came with me. I just got hired last. I got hired in February. They had a running back coach there. So you don't always get to pick your staff when you're not the head coach."
Bobby sat out that year?
"I believe so."