SANTA CLARA — The 49ers may have traded away Trey Lance, but Nick Bosa is definitely not available, coach Kyle Shanahan made clear Wednesday.
“No. I haven’t talked to many people about that but I know I feel pretty strongly,” Shanahan said. “I think everyone would agree to that.”
General manager John Lynch concurred in an ensuing media session. Asked if there’s a chance they trade Bosa, Lynch replied: “No, there isn’t.”
Bosa’s holdout has stretched throughout all of training camp and the preseason while the 49ers negotiate with his agent for likely the biggest contract in NFL history for a non-quarterback.
“I thought (a deal) would come probably at this time, looking at the history of those things,” Shanahan added. “I’m really hoping it gets done. I know they’re working tirelessly. Hopefully we can get him in sooner than later.”
Can he imagine not having Bosa on this team?
“I can imagine anything. It doesn’t mean I like that picture,” said Shanahan, noting how the 49ers missed Bosa for a game last season and most of the 2020 season. “You know how we feel about Nick and how good of a player he is. Hopefully we can come to terms soon and get him here as soon as possible.”
The regular-season opens Sept. 10 at the Pittsburgh Steelers. Bosa’s only time at the 49ers facility since last season came during their one-day mandatory minicamp in early June.
As for Bosa’s holdout, he’s accrued nearly $4 million in potential fines, though Lynch stated last month that the 49ers do not intend to enforce them. The NFL’s collective bargaining agreement calls for a $40,000 daily fine for training camp absences and a regular-season game check for each preseason game missed, for players in the fifth year of their rookie contract.
Their biggest personnel move came last Friday night, when they dealt 2021 No. 3 overall pick Trey Lance to the Dallas Cowboys, in exchange for a 2024 fourth-round pick.
PURDY’S 700 PITCHES
Quarterback Brock Purdy’s workload is being cut in half this week, and Shanahan said that is according to plan in his quarterback’s successful recovery from his March 10 elbow surgery.
“That goes back to our same numbers that we decided on two months ago. I’m going to mess up the numbers but it’s like 700 throws a week,” Shanahan said. “He’s fine, just the numbers are cut in half for the whole week.”
The 49ers practice Wednesday and Thursday before resuming Monday to officially kick off Week 1 preparations.
“We’re calling it a ‘de-load’ week,” Lynch said. “He went through. lot to get through camp and he needed to do that. We wanted to use this week to freshen it up. Thrilled with Brock and all the people who helped him in an excellent recovery and this is another step in that. The great news, and I don’t have a crystal ball, is that he’ll go into next week feeling a lot better, because his (passes) were reduced.”
Asked if the 49ers will keep three players on their 53-man roster all season, Lynch said: “That’s where we’re at right now. And we like them all. Happy with that group, the depth of it, and the quality of it, and excited about that.”
49ERS QB SHUFFLE
While Lynch acknowledged that quarterback drama seems perpetual, Shanahan simplified the 49ers’ carousel since 2017 by saying: “When we got here we waited 10 weeks, made a trade for a quarterback, he played five games, and we made him the highest-paid quarterback of all time, at the time. He played two of the next five years, and he did really good those two years. Injuries for three of his five years were legit; it was hard on him, hard on us. Then we made a move to go to a younger quarterback. That’s what we did. We thought he’d be ready in two years, and he wasn’t. Now we have a different younger quarterback. That’s the situation.”
Jimmy Garoppolo described the situation as “weird” Tuesday when asked by Sports Illustrated. Shanahan agreed with his former quarterback, but qualified his response.
“Yeah, anytime you trade up to third pick in the draft and it doesn’t work out, it’s a weird situation,” Shanahan replied. “But that’s the situation. That’s what happened. I don’t think it’s weird. It’s unusual it doesn’t work out.”
CAREFUL WITH KITTLE
Tight end George Kittle will sit out his second practice for precautionary reasons after he missed nearly two weeks of camp with a groin issue, Shanahan said. Kittle missed the first two games last season after a groin injury he sustained six days before the opener.
Said Shanahan: “We’re just taking care of him right now. There’s stuff lingering. We hope to get him going on Monday.”
Shanahan would not say whether Ross Dwelley or Charlie Woerner is Kittle’s immediate backup, a role that is not designated for rookie Brayden Willis. Lynch noted that the 49ers remain high on the future for rookie Cameron Latu, a third-round pick who was placed on season-ending Injured Reserve on Tuesday ahead of knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus.
Others not practicing (last-known injury): kicker Jake Moody (quadriceps), linebackers Dre Greenlaw (hamstring) and Oren Burks (knee); safety Talanoa Hufanga (knee); wide receivers Ray-Ray McClous (wrist) and Danny Gray (shoulder); and defensive tackle Arik Armstead (possible rest).
KICKER CONTINGENCY
A free-agent kicker is expected to be signed early next week, though neither Lynch nor Shanahan identified who might fill in if Moody’s quadriceps injury keeps him out of the opener. Lynch said Moody’s recovery is “tracking well.” Tristan Vizcaino, who kicked in the Niners’ 2020 finale, is among those who’ve auditioned. “I still believe we have a rare talent at that position who’s going to be our answer for a long time,” Lynch said.
INJURED RESERVE PLAN
Gray (shoulder) and rookie defensive end Robert Beal Jr. (hamstring) slid from the 53-man roster to Injured Reserve, where the 49ers are allowed to make up to eight moves in bringing players back for the season.
Those roster spots were promptly filled by re-signing defensive linemen Kerry Hyder Jr. and Austin Bryant.
Ray-Ray McCloud, a wide receiver and their return specialist, has “an outside chance” of playing in the season opener after having wrist surgery earlier this month.