49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan provided status updates for a number of players after practice on Friday, including quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo—but he still stopped short of naming him the starter for this weekend's game against the Los Angeles Rams (Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET/1:25 p.m. PT, FOX).
Shanahan stuck to his stance of not announcing a starter between Garoppolo and rookie Trey Lance in order to give Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris more to think about, but he was clearly encouraged with what he saw from Garoppolo at practice throughout the week after missing last Sunday's start against the Houston Texans with a thumb injury.
"He had a good week—a good week of practice when he was in there. I feel good with where he's at right now," Shanahan said.
It sounds like Shanahan won't wait until gameday to name a starter at quarterback, even if he plans on keeping everyone outside of team facilities in the dark until then. Shanahan says he's seen enough from both quarterbacks to know where things stand and that the team would be confident regardless of which player gets the nod.
"I'm not deciding Sunday morning," Shanahan said. "We don't have any practice left. I know where Jimmy's at today, I know where Trey's at, I know where our team's at, and I feel pretty good about where we're at, so I'm excited to get to Sunday. I'm really glad I have no press conferences after today. Once I survive this, I'm done talking about it, so I think we'll be good after that. I think you guys understand why we don't announce it, but regardless, with Trey playing last week, we've got two guys here with some experience that our team feels good with, and we'll see how it plays out."
Shanahan added that Lance continues to show improvement, saying that he was better in practice this week than he was heading into his start against the Texans last Sunday.
"Trey had a good week. I thought he was a little bit better than last week, so he keeps improving," Shanahan said.
Shanahan also gave updates on the status of left tackle Trent Williams (elbow), cornerback Emmanuel Moseley, and linebackers Dre Greenlaw and Azeez Al-Shaair. Here's a recap.
* Williams continues to deal with an elbow injury that kept him out of practice this week. Shanahan showed optimism throughout the week that Williams would be ready to play but didn't have much to add on Friday.
"He's still rehabbing his elbow trying to get ready for the game, so hopefully he'll be out there," Shanahan said.
In terms of who might fill in if Williams can't play, Shanahan mentioned rookie Jaylon Moore and second-year lineman Colton McKivitz.
"You always want the best tackle in the league out there, so you don't feel as good if he can't go out there," Shanahan said. "But Jaylon Moore's got some opportunities this year. He's played some good football. And we also have Colton McKivitz, who hasn't had a chance this year, but last year he got a start at guard versus the Rams, and he'd be an option also."
* Moseley (ankle) appears ready to be activated from injured reserve after a good week of practice. His health could prove to be important on Sunday considering the 49ers are still waiting on word regarding whether or not they'll get cornerbacks K'Waun Williams, Dontae Johnson, and Deommodore Lenoir back from the Reserve/COVID-19 list.
"I thought he had a good week," Shanahan said. "We really only go full speed on Thursday, which guys like him, Greenlaw, Azeez, guys who haven't had a chance to do it for a little bit, you'd like to go full speed for them all three days. But with where the team's at, you can't do that. So I was excited about him on Thursday, had a good walkthrough today, so I feel good about him being ready this week."
Shanahan had nothing to add regarding the status of the other three cornerbacks or safety Jimmie Ward, who will find out their availability on Saturday. The 49ers activated rookie cornerback Ambry Thomas off the COVID list earlier on Friday.
"Ambry was activated. He was out there today, and the rest of the guys have a chance tomorrow," Shanahan said.
* In terms of Greenlaw and Al-Shaair, it sounds like the 49ers have a chance to get at least one of them back on Sunday. Greenlaw has missed most of the season with a groin injury but could be ready for Sunday's regular season finale.
"Dre had a good week," Shanahan said. "He's tried to get through a number of these weeks and hasn't gotten this close yet, so the fact he's questionable today makes me feel he's had the most successful week. Hopefully he'll be good enough to go on Sunday just talking to him, but I have some optimism with how the week's gone."
Shanahan didn't sound as optimistic about Al-Shaair, who has battled elbow and knee issues and missed last Sunday's game against the Texans.
"Azeez does everything he can week in and week out to get to Sunday," Shanahan said. "You guys have seen him with his elbow brace he's been working on throughout this year. So we knew it would be tough to get to this Sunday. It's still tough, but he's about where we expected—having a chance to play, but when we say he's questionable, he really is questionable. I'd be very impressed if he can get there, but he showed he has a chance to get there."
