SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The injury-riddled San Francisco 49ers welcomed two key players back to practice when quarterback Brock Purdy and tight end George Kittle participated on Wednesday on a limited basis.
Purdy has missed the past two games and four of the last five with a toe injury. But he was able to join practice for the first time since reinjuring his toe in a Week 4 loss to Jacksonville.
Mac Jones, who has gone 3-1 as Purdy's replacement, also was limited with injuries to his knee and oblique but was able to do more than Purdy at practice, according to coach Kyle Shanahan.
The Niners (4-2) aren't sure who will start on Sunday night against Atlanta but are hopeful to have Kittle as part of the offense for that game. Kittle injured a hamstring in the season opener and has missed the past five games.
Kittle plays a vital part both in San Francisco's passing game with his ability to get open and run after the catch and as a blocker in the running game, which has struggled in his absence.
“Just having him back in the pass game, I think is huge,” Shanahan said. "Just having an explosive athlete out there who can run away from people. But both, just having him on the field on every offense play helps.”
Kittle's presence is also important in terms of leadership after San Francisco lost its vocal defensive leader last weekend when linebacker Fred Warner went down with a season-ending ankle injury.
“His presence is felt in every aspect of the game,” running back Christian McCaffrey said about Kittle. “His energy is so great, so it would be great to have him back out there.”
Warner had surgery on Tuesday after getting hurt in the first quarter of Sunday's loss at Tampa Bay. Shanahan said the surgery went well. He had said earlier in the week that the recovery process would take about three months but said Wednesday there is no definitive timeline.
Second-year player Tatum Bethune will get his second career start in place of Warner. Bethune, a seventh-round pick, got his only real work on defense before Warner's injury in a meaningless Week 18 game last season against Arizona. He had played only 16 other defensive snaps outside of that game and knows he has a heavy responsibility replacing a four-time All-Pro like Warner.
“He’s the leader of the team, not just the defense, so when he goes down, that’s a blow to every single one of us,” Bethune said. “We are professionals and we’ve got to prepare like starters. So I’ve got to go in and make sure there’s no drop-off when Fred comes off the field. That’s my goal right now. I’m not trying to be like Fred. I’m just making sure I’m Tatum Bethune and that’s what I'm going to do.”
Bethune had 10 tackles on Sunday but there were also some communication errors after he entered the game. Bethune will wear the “green dot” on his helmet and communicate the calls from coordinator Robert Saleh to the rest of the defense.
Shanahan said he was encouraged by what he saw from Bethune against the Bucs, especially after he rewatched the game for a second time.
“It was very inspiring watching how Tatum played,” he said. "A bunch of our young guys, there are some good things on that tape. Got to clean up some mistakes that we made, but I liked how the film looked and how the guys played.”
In other injury news, receivers Ricky Pearsall (knee) and Skyy Moore (ankle), defensive lineman Yetur Gross-Matos (hamstring) and right guard Dominick Puni (knee) also missed practice and might not be able to go this week.
Rookie receiver Jordan Watkins was limited with a calf injury but could be in line to make his debut as a possible replacement at punt returner if Moore can’t play.
Defensive lineman Kevin Givens (pectoral), receiver Jauan Jennings (ankle, ribs, shoulder), cornerback Renardo Green (neck), defensive tackle C.J. West (thumb) and defensive tackle Kalia Davis (hand) were also limited.
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