On Tuesday, San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan wasn't sure how much his starters, including quarterback Trey Lance, would play in the preseason finale against the Houston Texans. His plan had not been finalized yet, but the coach figured it would not go beyond the first half.

On Wednesday morning, Shanahan had a better idea of the plan as he participated in his weekly KNBR interview.


"I'd like them to get a couple of drives," Shanahan revealed on the Murph & Mac show. "I just want them to go out and have a little bit of the continuity of the offense. They haven't played since the first game of the preseason. After this, we have 17 days, I believe. Something like that until they play again (in Week 1 against the Bears).

"That's such a long time that I want them to go out there and just get in there a little bit. But I'm trying to get them out pretty fast. My goal is for them to stay healthy, and as long as they do that, I'll be happy."

The interior of the offensive line is the group that many feel could use some added reps. There are a lot of question marks there. You have future Hall of Fame tackle Trent Williams anchoring one side of the O-line, and the 49ers remain optimistic that Mike McGlinchey will return in time for Week 1 and anchor the opposite side.

The interior, however, is still a work in progress. The 49ers coach knows that and shared that nothing has been finalized. While it would be nice to have more experienced players in there, protecting second-year quarterback Trey Lance, you can't always accomplish that.

"You always wish you had more experience," Shanahan said. "You always wish you had just five Pro Bowlers in there who have been playing a while, but this is part of the league. Losing a good player like Laken [Tomlinson this offseason] in free agency, we had to step up and get some guys.


"I'm excited for [Aaron] Banks and what he's done this offseason. I was excited to get a guy in here like [Spencer] Burford in the [fourth round], with his ability and stuff, that he has the ability to at least start at that position. And then just having guys like Dan Brunskill, who's done it here for the last few years as a solid guy that we can rely on and put in there at any time if those guys aren't ready to go.

"And then I like some of these young guys who have been competing here since we've gotten them. It's still not settled yet. We'll see how this game ends up, how these next 17 days go, and hopefully, we'll get Mike [McGlinchey] back. And hopefully, Jaylon Moore will be healthy. And I'm hoping we'll have a group of nine guys that we know are going to have to help us throughout the year. But it's definitely nice having Trent there over on the left side."

You can listen to the entire conversation with Shanahan below.



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