While at The Greenbrier in West Virginia, San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan spoke with reporters via a conference call on Monday, the day after the team's 37-15 win over the Carolina Panthers. Here is everything he had to say.
Transcript provided by the San Francisco 49ers Communications staff.
Opening Comments:
"Injuries from the game. I think as you guys saw [CB Emmanuel Moseley] E-Man tore his ACL. [DB] Jimmie Ward has a broken hand, he'll get surgery tomorrow. We'll have an update after his surgery on how much time he'll miss. [DL] Nick Bosa groin, we'll re-evaluate him on Wednesday when we start to practice. [K] Robbie Gould, knee contusion, same thing. He has some swelling, we'll see how it goes throughout the week. We're working out some kickers tomorrow, just in case. [DB Deommodore Lenoir] D-Mo, he has the wrist, should be fine. [RB] Jeff Wilson [Jr.] with his shoulder contusion, he should be fine also. Go ahead guys."
What is the plan for Moseley? Is he going back or will he stay with you guys this week?
"I assume that he is going back. I didn't ask that. I'm not exactly sure, but I don't know yet. Sorry, but I assume he is going back."
With Jimmie Ward, when you have to figure out how long he's going to miss, is there a chance you could play with like a club or is that kind of still what you're trying to figure out?
"That's what we're trying to figure out. There is a chance, so that's why we want to see how the surgery goes and figure out if he could do that after it."
Did you get the sense with Nick Bosa it was more precautionary to keep him out after his groin tightened up?
"It was bothering him today, so yeah, you always want to use caution, especially with Nick on that type of stuff, but I know if he went today, if we practiced today, he couldn't go. I'm hoping that he does better throughout this week but yeah, it wasn't feeling great today."
What are your initial thoughts on how you'll go about replacing Emmanuel Moseley? Obviously, you have multiple options there.
"We have multiple options as you know. Guys were in that position last year. We also have [CB] Dontae [Johnson], a veteran who's done it before. We got young guys as you guys saw, with [CB Samuel] Womack [III] as a possibility. And you guys saw [CB] Ambry [Thomas] hold that role pretty good last year towards the end of the year. So we'll figure it out this week, but we haven't made our mind up yet."
I know it's all soon, but have you had a chance to talk to Emmanuel and knowing obviously that he's in his contract year, have you had time to kind of express how much you'd like to keep him around?
"I have not gotten the chance to, he's been away today, but I know he knows how I feel. I've told him that before, before the injury, so and I know I feel the same, if not stronger, so it was a real sad, unfortunate thing to happened to him. He was playing his ass off too and he's going to be very missed this year and I really hope to have him back next year."
Into the future I know you indicated CB Jason Verrett isn't probably ready this week, but is he a viable option as far as was being a candidate to start at Moseley's spot?
"Oh yeah. If Verrett's good to go, he's a big-time corner, so if Verrett can get these practice reps and get out there and get fully-healed and get back into game-shape and ready to go, he'll end up being our guy."
I know this is part of the game, but it seems like key players more than your fair share are getting injured. Does it seem like that to you and is there anything you can pinpoint to why that's happening?
"That key players get injured?"
It just seems like you guys have had more than your fair share of very important players getting injured in the last couple of years.
"No, I think it happens to other teams too, so I don't want to say we're the only ones, but yeah, it's a challenge when it happens, so you hope to have better luck."
After the game, TE George Kittle was talking about how it probably would be through the league to have similar surfaces if they are going to be artificial across the league so that it's consistent. Do you think that would help at all?
"I don't really know. I know how much everyone prefers grass and I think George said it best yesterday. We have concerts in our stadium all the time. I think Elton John played there this weekend. And I just love that we always get grass and then it's always new and they always re-sod it and I know you have to do some extra stuff to get that done, but I can't tell you how big of a difference it makes for us. I'm glad that we don't have to deal with that stuff in our stadium."
Given Verrett's injury history, it would be quite a story if he was able to come back and kind of flash his 2020 form. I guess you're clearly not putting it past him.
"Oh, I'm definitely not putting it past him. J.V. is, I'm sure you guys have seen a little bit of him just being around him, he is he is a very impressive person and he's gone through as much bad things in his career that he has continually had to try to overcome. And man, playing the whole year in 2020 and the type of year he had before all the things that happened before that was unbelievable. And he, again, had the setback the next year in Week One verse Detroit and he's been working like he always has to come back from that. And he's done the work to where he is healthy enough to get into practice now, but we just need him to practice some so he can make sure that he can hold up through everything and get his skillset back. And if he does do that, I think you guys know just like most of the people in this league know how good of a corner J.V. is."
How did Jimmie Ward get his hand broken and was he in disbelief just after making his debut and one play?
"Yeah, it happened on the opening kickoff, so he did it on the first kickoff and in Jimmie Ward style, he just truly didn't want to accept that it was broken, so he stayed in there for the next play, a couple plays and then finally realized it was. Actually, that happened to him on the first play versus Tampa Bay in 2018 also, so it was just unfortunate and hopefully the surgery will go well and he'll be able to come back and help us, but it was just a bad break he got."
Do you have any kind of general thoughts on the nature of your business when you arrive in West Virginia and find out the next morning that you know the Former Panthers Head Coach Matt Rhule that you coached against the previous day has been let go from his job? I just wondering how that struck you?
"It never feels good, at all of course. We all compete against each other, but we also can relate to each other a ton. And you don't just think about the head coach, you think about all the other people involved too. The whole staff, all their families. It puts a lot of stuff up in there and that's why every single decision that you make, I always think about where my kids are going to go to school, the next season based off of it. And I just had that growing up, I've said it a lot, but this is the first place in my life I've lived longer than four years. And that is part of this business, so everyone knows it. That's what you sign up for, but you also know how tough that is on the individual and all the families and people involved in it, so you never wish that on anybody. And I got a lot of respect for Matt and I know he'll land on his feet and I hope he finds a better situation for himself."