A sports.yahoo.com report examines whether the San Francisco 49ers’ handling of injuries has contributed to a series of player setbacks, with analyst Grant Cohn placing responsibility on the team’s training and medical staff.
The issue resurfaced after rookie wide receiver De’Zhaun Stribling injured his ankle during San Francisco’s 27-7 win over the Los Angeles Rams. He initially returned to the game after being cleared by the team’s medical staff, but later suffered a deltoid sprain and is expected to miss at least four games.
Cohn said the situation resembled earlier incidents involving quarterback Brock Purdy and wide receiver Ricky Pearsall. Purdy sustained turf toe in Week 1 last season and was cleared to return in Week 4, then missed the next six games. Pearsall suffered a PCL injury during that same Week 4 game, returned after seven weeks and was injured again in Week 15.
He is expected to miss the entire current season because of the PCL problem.
Cohn argued that the team’s approach to player recoveries should be reconsidered. In his report, he wrote, “The 49ers need to seriously consider firing their training staff.” He also questioned how many players could be hurt again after following accelerated recovery plans before changes were made.
San Francisco has dealt with multiple serious injuries to important players in several seasons since Kyle Shanahan became head coach in 2017. The team went 6-11 in 2024 amid significant injuries, then finished 12-5 the following season while continuing to lose players to injuries.
