Team news: San Francisco 49ers

During a Tuesday appearance on KNBR, Kyle Shanahan said he believes Jimmy Garoppolo will be healthy enough to play in Week 7 against the Colts.

“I mean, he’s doing good,” Shanahan said, via 49ersWebZone.com. “We’ll see when we get back [after the bye week]. I think he’ll be ready to go next week when we get back. That’s the plan. I know he’s doing a lot better now than he was last week.”

Related players: Trey Lance

Lance is dealing with a knee sprain he suffered while playing in place of Garoppolo in Sunday’s loss to the Cardinals. The team says Garoppolo will start again when healthy. The Niners have a bye in Week 6.

Kyle Shanahan says Trey Lance doesn't know when he injured knee. He had 16 carries. Prognosis: NOT a long-term injury, should be 1 to 2 week thing, but possibly just one week.

Jimmy Garoppolo may have better chance to return post-bye for Colts game but all TBD.

It's being called a left knee sprain, according to Inman. The 49ers have a bye in Week 6 and return to play the Colts in Week 7. The bad news is it's a Sunday night game, so owners will need a backup plan if they are counting on Lance or Garoppolo in Week 7. We likely won't know much more until next week.

According to the report this appears to be a precautionary measure to fortify Kittle’s health for the remainder of the season. The move will keep Kittle on the sidelines for at least three weeks with a potential return slated for Week 9’s NFC West clash with the Cardinals.

On the field, Kittle’s impact cannot be replaced, but in fantasy expect Ross Dwelley to become a legitimate streaming candidate at tight end. Deebo Samuel should see his floor rise based on increased opportunity, while Brandon Aiyuk could be the biggest beneficiary of Kittle’s absence.

According to the report this appears to be a precautionary measure to fortify Kittle’s health for the remainder of the season. The move will keep Kittle on the sidelines for at least three weeks with a potential return slated for Week 9’s NFC West clash with the Cardinals.

On the field, Kittle’s impact cannot be replaced, but in fantasy expect Ross Dwelley to become a legitimate streaming candidate at tight end. Deebo Samuel should see his floor rise based on increased opportunity, while Brandon Aiyuk could be the biggest beneficiary of Kittle’s absence.

49ers TE George Kittle (calf) is doubtful for Week 5 at Arizona.

Kittle's expected absence is a big loss with Trey Lance making his first career start. Ross Dwelley would start in Kittle's place.

49ers HC Kyle Shanahan told reporters Friday that Trey Lance will start Week 5 at Arizona.

Related Player: Jimmy Garropolo

This was expected with Jimmy G missing practice this week. Lance is 4for4's #14 QB this week.

San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle missed Thursday's practice session with a calf injury.

Kittle missed two practices to start last week but was able to practice on Friday and suit up for Sunday, so the expectation is that he will follow the same routine here. It is always concerning when a player misses back-to-back practices, but as we have seen with other top players, Kittle can be ready to roll with just one practice session under his belt. Fantasy managers will want to monitor this situation closely as he will likely be receiving a questionable tag on Friday's final injury report.

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo missed Thursday's practice with a calf injury,

This marks two straight DNP's for Garoppolo. It is looking more and more like it will be Trey Lance under center this weekend against the Arizona Cardinals. There is still a chance Garoppolo practices tomorrow and tries to make a go of it against Arizona, so fantasy managers will want to monitor Friday's injury report before making plans to start Lance this weekend. Lance is currently our 14th ranked quarterback for Week 5.

As part of a mailbag question, someone asked what the game plan would look like with Trey Lance under center.

I expect it will be a “Back to the Future”-type situation for Kyle Shanahan and Mike McDaniel, who had rookies at quarterback (Robert Griffin III) and running back (Alfred Morris) when they were assistants in Washington in 2012. That team led the NFL in rushing and went to the playoffs. Morris finished with 1,613 rushing yards and Griffin with 815 yards.

Related players: Elijah Mitchell, Trey Sermon, Jimmy Garoppolo

The story said the one big difference is Lance attempted 318 passes at North Dakota State while Griffin attempted 1,192 throws at Baylor, which points more to a run-heavy attack. Anther issue is Sermon has only been OK as a runner over two games, and even if Mitchell returns from a shoulder injury, he's a rookie as well, so there are a lot of questions with the run game. The Niners do have the luxury of a bye in Week 6.