San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch met with reporters on Wednesday, during the team's annual end-of-season press conference. It was the first opportunity for the 49ers to share injury updates following last weekend's playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

Tight end Jake Tonges, who filled in for the injured George Kittle, suffered a plantar fascia injury but is expected to recover in approximately three weeks.


Running back Christian McCaffrey sustained a shoulder stinger against Seattle but appears to have avoided a significant injury.

Rookie defensive tackle Alfred Collins suffered a shoulder injury that may require surgery.

"His shoulder went out in the game," Shanahan said.

Shanahan and Lynch also addressed the status of several players who had already been dealing with injuries. Rookie linebacker Nick Martin was placed on injured reserve after spending an extended period in the concussion protocol following an injury suffered on November 30 against the Cleveland Browns.

Lynch noted that Martin has been improving and indicated the team believed he cleared the concussion protocol on Wednesday morning.


Defensive end Nick Bosa, who missed most of the season after suffering an ACL injury, remains a major focus as the 49ers look ahead to 2026.

"We don't have an exact timetable on it, but we're hoping around training camp," Shanahan said of his return timeline.

Lynch added, "And he's tracking really good. He's doing great."

Defensive end Mykel Williams, who also missed most of the season with an ACL injury, expressed earlier this week that he hopes to be ready sometime around training camp.

"Yeah, that's around the timeline," Lynch confirmed.


As for George Kittle, who is recovering from Achilles surgery, Lynch cautioned against setting firm expectations but emphasized that early signs are encouraging.

"What I do know, right out of surgery, Dr. ElAttrache called and just went into great detail as to why it was a real success, and went into a lot of things," Lynch said. "... But the outcome was really good, and there's a lot of reason to be optimistic where the tear was and such.

"He's doing well. He's already been around our team with that infectious personality. George was down for a little bit, but he's already flipped the switch to recover. And George will attack it in a great way. And we're very hopeful to have him back."

Lynch also noted that Achilles recoveries have advanced significantly since his own playing days.

"They've gotten much better and more aggressive in the rehab, and how quickly you get after it," Lynch said. "And I think that will be the case for George, and we expect to have him back next year, and a big impact, like he always has been for us."

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