Safety Adrian Colbert was active on Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers. Although, you may not have known it by looking out onto the field when the San Francisco 49ers were on defense. Rookie D.J. Reed got the start at free safety while Colbert was limited to special teams.
Reed started because he was the most prepared to play, according to head coach Kyle Shanahan. Colbert was dealing with a hip injury all week, did not practice the Wednesday before the game, and was limited over the next two days.
"Colbert didn't practice much throughout the week, was limited throughout the week, had to take some of his reps off, which he didn't get many at all," Shanahan explained after Sunday's game. "We wanted to go with the healthier guy."
Colbert was healthy enough to contribute on special teams but not deemed healthy enough to take on a full workload on defense.
Added Shanahan: "He was good enough to go, but he's been banged up these last couple of weeks and when you don't practice, almost for two weeks, been practicing a little bit but not (a lot) compared to D.J., you want to put the guy in who's had the reps and is a little bit more prepared. Colbert felt good enough to go towards the end of the week, but he wasn't as prepared for safety as D.J. was."
What did Shanahan think about Reed's first NFL start?
"I thought D.J. Reed did a good job in the game," he told reporters on Monday. "Improvement from the week before. I think he'll continue to get better with more reps."
Reed's reps may once again become limited once Colbert is at 100 percent. Shanahan didn't necessarily guarantee that a healthy Colbert will supplant Reed, but it is the likely scenario. For now, the second-year safety needs to get back on the practice field.
"I think Colbert will be healthier this week," Shanahan continued, "which will give Colbert a much better chance to get his spot back. We're one day into this. We'll see by Wednesday how much better he is. But, I expect Colbert to get out there eventually."
Wednesday is the 49ers' first practice of the week as the team prepares to face the Arizona Cardinals at Levi's Stadium on Sunday.
Reed's versatility makes him an asset on defense. He received work at both cornerback and safety during training camp and recorded two tackles on Sunday in Los Angeles.
"D.J. got his opportunity because of health reasons," Shanahan said. "Sometimes all a guy needs is an opportunity. We'll see how this week goes."
