Head Coach Kyle Shanahan Press Conference
Head Coach Kyle Shanahan
Press Conference – November 9, 2026
San Francisco 49ers
Opening comments:
“Injuries from the game, [CB] Renardo Green hurt his back. He’ll be day-to-day. [DB Deommodore Lenoir] DMo with his foot, also day-to-day. [DL] Gracen Halton fractured, dislocated ankle. He’ll get surgery later this week, go on IR. That’s it. Go ahead.”
Is there a possibility that Gracen Halton comes back if you guys play deep into the playoffs, similar to LB Fred Warner last year?
“I don’t think so. I didn’t ask that, but I’d be surprised. I can ask that later, answer on Wednesday, but I doubt it.”
What about DL C.J. West? How is his progress coming along to potentially also return?
“I’m hoping to get him back at practice on Wednesday.”
How about WR Mike Evans and WR Deebo Samuel Sr.?
“Hoping to get Deebo back at practice on Wednesday also. Mike, not expecting him to be ready to go. We’ll see how he is later in the week, but C.J. and Deebo, expecting to get them back on Wednesday to at least start practicing.”
I know the defensive line didn’t register any quarterback sacks, but watching the film, can you see the effect that the return of DL Nick Bosa and DL DeForest Buckner made on the defense and what they were able to do?
“Yeah definitely, because I thought we hit the quarterback a lot. I thought we also rushed really well in some key situations. Buckner got him on the ground a number of times. [DL] Keion [White] got him on the ground a couple times. [Las Vegas Raiders QB] Kirk’s [Cousins] pretty good at getting rid of the ball when we do beat someone, but I thought our pass rush and the pressure on the quarterback, I thought we had a good game in that manner.”
There was a report that the Bears are going to bring in DL Jordan Elliott for a workout. Obviously a tough situation how he was released in Tennessee. Is he a guy that you would consider bringing back given what happened there?
“Yeah. I mean, that was scary kind of in that stuff, but Jordan’s a guy that we knew real well when he was here and this building loved Jordan. Jordan was a great person while he was here and great teammate. I’m not exactly sure what went down there, but Jordan is always a guy that we’d be interested in as a person and player.”
As far as rotating the safety group throughout the game, is the end goal to find the two best guys at that position or does the team like the idea of keeping guys fresh throughout the game?
“I don’t think we know what the end goal is. We’ve got three good guys that are playing at a very high level, so you just play that until it plays itself out. Just like [S] Malik [Mustapha] hurt his playing time just because of injuries in training camp, and then kind of the same thing happened to [S Marques] Sigle who was also playing at a real high level before he was hurt. [S Ji’Ayir Brown] Tig’s been the one who’s stayed consistent and healthy. So, all three of those guys have going, I think if two separate themselves way over another then obviously we would keep those guys out there longer. But, we’ll just keep doing it week-to-week and we’ll see what it ends up, but it’s a pretty good problem to have.”
With the NFL reinstating WR Brandon Aiyuk today, what does that do in terms of your guys’ plans in the immediate future before the trade deadline and afterwards?
“It has same as how I talked last time on him. I was just told that by [executive vice president of communications] Corry [Rush] when I walked in, so it means absolutely nothing to our team. I think we’ve got a two-week roster exemption. That’s all administrative stuff to me.”
WR Jordan Watkins had an improved game. TE George Kittle joked that except for on his pass that the blocking wasn’t as great. What did you see on that play?
“On which one?”
George said it was, I guess except on his screen, it wasn’t a great blocking job by Jordan.
“He blocked good. The problem is you can’t block on a screen down the field, so he just got a penalty for it. The guy was in a man coverage and he started blocking him right away, which you can’t be blocking before the ball’s thrown on that. He should have just ran the guy off, so it was just a mistake he made.”
How do you spend the next 24 hours in terms of the trade deadline? Are deals proposed and are you and president of football operations and general manager John Lynch and princpial owner Jed York on a group text thread or do you hang out in John’s office or what?
“No, I sit and hang out in my office and study the crap out of the Cowboys and worry about the team that we have. If someone comes up, John will come down, bring the name to my attention and I’ll look at him if I haven’t done that already. But no, I’m always just working on the opponent, which is Dallas this week, and if things come up they keep me in the loop.”
In regard to WR Brandin Cooks and the wide receiver group, how much closer is he to really getting a grasp of the offense and being more effective?
“I think he has been effective. I think we went to him twice yesterday and [QB] Brock [Purdy] got to him twice and made both of those plays. He’s been doing like everyone else. I think he doesn’t have many busts. I think he’s getting used to the offense and being a part of the group and I think all those guys have, there’s not really one guy ahead of the other too much. You never know where the ball is going to go. I think Jordan Watkins has been playing real well and he got more opportunities yesterday. His touchdown pass, he was fourth in the progression on that play. Brock went all the way across the board and got it to him and he made the play. There were other plays he was first in the progression and it’s no different for Brandin Cooks and any of the other guys. It was no different for [WR Demarcus Robinson] D-Rob in the game, but I’ve been real happy with Brandin and how he’s been blocking. When the ball’s come his way, I think he’s done a good job making the plays for the most part.”
I know you said former WR Emmanuel Sanders was a special case in how quickly he adapted to the offense. What was it about him that made it seem to all of us, easier for him to get activated and more involved so quickly?
“Where he was in his career. He was the number one receiver for the Broncos at the time, had been for the prior four years and was still at that part in his career. He wasn’t just sitting there available on the street. He was the number one receiver on another team who was out of contention and he was looking to go somewhere else. So, it was just different spots.”