Kyle Shanahan has strange new update on Ricky Pearsall, Trent Williams

6 days ago 2

A pair of injured San Francisco 49ers may be further away from playing in the postseason opener vs. the Philadelphia Eagles than head coach Kyle Shanahan originally indicated.

Shanahan on Monday in a conference call with reporters didn't rule out the postseason returns of left tackle Trent Williams and wide receiver Ricky Pearsall after the pair missed the 49ers' season finale vs. the Seattle Seahawks. However, he didn't sound optimistic.

"Trent Williams and Ricky, both with hamstring and knee/ankle," Shanahan said as part of his injury update. "We'll evaluate them throughout this week."

A reporter later asked Shanahan to clarify the difference between "day-to-day" and "evaluated throughout the week" for injured players. He responded that the former meant a better chance of a rapid return, whereas the latter leaves more room for bad news.

This is the second update the 49ers head coach has given on the pair of injured offensive starters and it ran counter to the first one he gave.

Shanahan on Saturday night after the 49ers lost to the Seahawks said that Williams and Pearsall both had a much better chance of playing had the club played Sunday instead of Saturday. That would seem to indicate they were both close to playing, and with eight days between games signs appeared to point toward their postseason returns.

Now it looks like not only could they not be ready by Wednesday's practice to open the week, but they may not be ready to suit up Sunday.

Missing Williams and Pearsall undoubtedly played a roll in the 49ers' offensive struggles in their season finale. Missing one or both of them against a very good Eagles defense could present major problems again in a win-or-go-home game.

We'll be tracking Williams and Pearsall's statuses closely throughout the lead up to the wild card game.

More 49ers: Dolphins request to interview pair of 49ers execs for GM opening

This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: 49ers WR Ricky Pearsall, LT Trent Williams may not return for playoffs

Read Entire Article