Injuries have plagued the San Francisco 49ers all season, and it’s not stopping ahead of the Wild Card Round game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Nonetheless, one of the Niners’ main players they hope to have available will be veteran tackle Trent Williams.
Williams injured his hamstring in Week 17 in the win over the Chicago Bears. He didn’t play in Week 18 as San Francisco fell to the Seattle Seahawks, and now there are question marks as to whether he can go against the Eagles.
Nonetheless, Williams spoke with reporters on Jan. 9 and shared how he’s feeling as the team prepares to head to Philadelphia.
“I feel good,” Williams said (h/t 95.7 The Game). “We’ll see. I feel confident.”
Williams noted that he’s looking forward to heading to Philadelphia and into a hostile environment.
“Anytime you go in there, it’s eventful,” Williams added (h/t 95.7 The Game). “You are going to see a lot of middle fingers. You’re going into the Belly of the Beast.”
Meanwhile, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan provides injury updates ahead of the game against the Eagles with all these players listed as questionable: DL Keion White (groin), WR Ricky Pearsall (knee/ankle), LB Dee Winters (ankle), LB Luke Gifford (quad), DL Yetur Gross-Matos (knee), CB Renardo Green and Williams (ankle).
Eagles Get Troubling Words Before 49ers Game
Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni chose to sit multiple starters in Week 18. As a result, it’s a move that may carry consequences as the team prepares for the Wild Card Round against the San Francisco 49ers.
Speaking on the Jan. 9 episode of “Up & Adams,” former NFL player Logan Ryan shared concerns about that approach. Ryan said the layoff could be an issue as several Eagles enter the matchup with the Niners after not playing the regular-season finale against the Washington Commanders.
“I’m not on board with Nick Sirianni managing those starters like that,” Ryan said. “You can’t just flip a switch and expect it to work. That seems to be the Eagles’ approach this year—waiting until the playoffs to suddenly start performing at a high level, resting players and hoping it all clicks. It doesn’t always work that way. How you finish the regular season carries over into the playoffs, and momentum matters.”
Kyle Shanahan Talks Jalen Hurts
Despite Ryan’s take regarding whether the Eagles will be rusty, 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan understands they are playing the reigning Super Bowl champions, and eliminating them won’t be easy, especially if Jalen Hurts has a big game. Shanahan spoke with the media on Jan. 7 and was asked about Hurts.
“He’s got a big-time arm,” Shanahan said (h/t Grant Cohn of On SI). “With those wideouts and stuff he has, he’s capable of making any throw, whether on time or whether extremely late, because usually, when a quarterback is late, you can’t throw it that far and catch up with those guys—he can.
“So, you got to honor the entire field with them. And anytime you have a quarterback who’s capable of doing that, who also is a threat every single play throughout an entire game with his legs, it’s an issue, whether he uses it or not.
“When someone is a threat like that, you have to adjust certain things that you don’t have to worry about versus other people. And whether they do it or not, you got to honor it, and that slows down your whole defense as a whole.”
Trent Williams Delivers Huge Injury Update Before 49ers-Eagles