The San Francisco 49ers took a step closer to getting star linebacker Fred Warner back this week.
The Niners announced earlier in the week that Warner has been designated to return from injured reserve, which comes about three months after he suffered a dislocated and broken ankle back in October.
Warner also practiced on a limited basis on both Wednesday and Thursday.
But that hardly guaranteed Warner would return this week for the divisional-round showdown against the Seattle Seahawks. Even for Warner, that would have been quite the feat considering how much time he has missed.
Unfortunately, the Niners will not be getting Warner back this week, as head coach Kyle Shanahan noted on Thursday that he would not be activated off IR.
"Fred Warner will not be activated for Saturday’s game, Kyle Shanahan said," The Athletic's Vic Tafur reported.
The fact that Warner even remotely has a chance to return this season is astounding. After all, it has only been 95 days since he suffered the injury. Us mere mortals couldn't dream of doing what Warner is trying to pull off.
Now, the next possible return date for Warner is the NFC Championship Game, which was initially the earliest expected return date for Warner, assuming the Niners make it that far.
Even if the Niners do advance and Warner plays, chances are he's going to be very limited when it comes to his workload.
That said, just having Warner in uniform would provide an immeasurable boost for the Niners. In fact, seeing Warner on the practice field in and of itself has given San Francisco some extra steam, something left tackle Trent Williams admitted.
“The fact that Fred *Warner) even has a jersey on, less than 100 days after what happened to him, that just uplifts the team — whether Fred takes the field in these playoffs or not,” Williams said. “It gives us a boost of energy.”
San Francisco will take on Seattle on Saturday. If the 49ers advance, we should get our next update on Warner at the top of next week.
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