San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan remains limited at the start of training camp as he continues recovering from injuries sustained in a July 14 car accident.
Shanahan is working through the lingering effects of the severe concussion he suffered in the crash. The coach also sustained a broken nose, three broken ribs, and a broken hand, and reportedly required 40 stitches to his face.
While Shanahan's role has been reduced, the 49ers coaching staff has stepped up in his absence. The team remains confident it can maintain its standard throughout training camp as players and coaches continue preparing for the 2026 season.
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However, offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak acknowledged that the team is eager to have Shanahan fully back in his usual role.
"Kyle's an outstanding leader, an outstanding mentor," Kubiak said on Wednesday. "He's a great friend to me. Obviously, we're all just glad he's doing well and recovering and that everything ended up kind of okay from that situation. The thing I feel really strongly, kind of going through this with our team, is it's just a reflection of Kyle's leadership that he can kind of be absent in certain ways or not as involved in certain ways, but this building and this team can continue to press on and continue to function at a high level.
"That's because he's enabled people to lead. He's enabled me. He's enabled our whole staff to just take on our jobs and lead in our own way. Just because he might not be here in the same way for now, and as he continues to heal, we're pressing on. We're still handling our business, and our players are handling it the right way.
"Again, it's all credit to his leadership. It's the standard he set. It's the culture that him and [general manager] John Lynch have set here. I'm honored to be a part of it. Then, as his friend, I'm glad he's getting better and just kind of taking it day-by-day."
Kubiak added that while Shanahan's involvement has been limited, the head coach has still been present at the facility every day and continues monitoring what is happening on the practice field, with assistant head coach and offensive line coach Chris Foerster serving as interim head coach during practices.
The 49ers have maintained regular communication with Shanahan as the team prepares for the upcoming season. According to Kubiak, Shanahan's confidence in his coaching staff has allowed the group to operate efficiently and live up to the team's lofty standards.
"I'm very confident coming in here every day and doing my job, helping lead the offense and helping support our assistant coaches, who are doing a phenomenal job," Kubiak said. "Everyone's stepping up and just doing what we normally do, which is do our jobs, and do it to a really high standard, and take care of our business. I think Kyle knows that.
"I think he's very confident that we're all capable of that, so we can just keep getting through this and keep pushing one day at a time."
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