SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Fred Warner’s return will have to wait at least another week.
Despite the quarterback’s refusal to rule out whether he could return from a broken and dislocated ankle as soon as Saturday night against the Seattle Seahawks, the San Francisco 49ers are sticking to the original plan to open him in the NFC Championship Game on Jan. 25 if they can move forward.
Coach Kyle Shanahan emphasized all this time that the Niners were headed to the NFL finals in any case of Warner’s return. On Thursday, after the 49ers finished their final practice of the week, Shanahan announced that Warner would not be out with an injury this week, but said he was encouraged that the timeline for the NFC title game was still in play.
“We feel confident about that,” Shanahan said. “We’ll see if it works out.”
Warner offered at least some hope Wednesday when asked if his return could come Saturday in Seattle. He said he was taking it “day by day” and pointed out that the 49 opened his 21-day training window this week even though they initially said they would not.
From there, Warner was his usual, energetic self on the practice field and participated sparingly for the second day in a row. But the 49ers dialed it back Thursday; Warner was on the field in shorts and a jersey but without a helmet during practice open to the media.
Warner was officially listed as inactive, and Shanahan said he had no setbacks and looked “good” in Wednesday’s practice.
Warner will travel with the team to Seattle.
His mere presence on the practice field provided an emotional shot in the arm for a team that needed one after losing stalwart George Kittle for the season to a torn right Achilles during the wild-card round.
“The fact that Fred still has a jersey less than 100 days after what happened to him, that’s a lift for the team,” Trent Williams said. “Whether Fred takes the field in these tournaments or not, that’s motivating. Having him there, having his face in this locker room, it’s motivating. It helps everybody.”
Although Warner is on track to return soon, the Niners have insisted he has other benchmarks to hit in order to be cleared, especially since Warner is only three months removed from surgery following his injury on Oct. 12 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Dr. Daniel Kaplan, an orthopedic sports surgeon at NYU’s Langone Orthopedic Hospital, said a three-month recovery is a typical timeline for a person to return to exercise or participation in sports but not regular sports. For the average person, such a recovery can take about six months, but Kaplan said elite athletes with the resources available to someone like Warner can be faster.
“Three months would be at the beginning, but it depends on what the fracture looks like, if it was more of a dislocation and less of a bone, I think it’s possible,” Kaplan said.
For his part, Warner said he is aware of the risks, such as re-occurring, when he returns.
“Once I put that helmet on and put on the shoulder pads, I know what it is,” Warner said. “I know how to play this game. I know what I can do.”
Although Warner will not be available Saturday night, the Niners are hoping to get some key players back.
Receiver Ricky Pearsall (knee, ankle) and linebackers Dee Winters (ankle) and Luke Gifford (quads) are questionable. Pearsall and Winters were limited in practice all week and Gifford missed the first two days and limited Thursday. Pearsall missed the last meeting with Seattle in Week 18 and said Wednesday he expects to play, although he may have to be more careful running after the catch to minimize damage to his right knee.
Shanahan said that if Pearsall plays, they will have to take precautions, although it will not be clearly defined by the number.
“We wouldn’t put him in the rush count, but I’ve seen improvement,” Shanahan said. “He’s still fighting it, that’s why we’re still questioning him. But we’re never going to put a guy in a quick stat, especially in the playoffs. But we also understand where he’s at and that’s probably going to have to be different than his actual situation when he’s 100 percent healthy.
Safety Ji’Ayir Brown (hamstring) was the only Niner sidelined for Saturday’s game.
