SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The San Francisco 49ers are still clinging to hope, no matter how small, that Jimmy Garoppolo will start Sunday at quarterback against the Houston Texans.
Garoppolo, who is battling a right thumb injury, did not practice again on Friday, meaning he did not participate in any of the team's four workouts this week.
The Niners are officially listing him as a suspect for Sunday, although coach Kyle Shanahan is yet to name Trey Lance the starter. Lance took all the reps with the offense early in the exercise.
"I'm not ready to announce it," Shanahan said. "Jimmy is not out, so I'm dashing hopes. He's got a chance this week, so he'll have a better chance next week."
According to Shanahan, the Niners' medical staff made it clear that Garoppolo will have a better chance of recovering and potentially playing this week as long as he stays out of throwing. Therefore, instead of testing the injured thumb in practice, Garopolo is excluded altogether.
The next step would be for Garoppolo to take a thumb test on Saturday or possibly even wait until Sunday morning.
Meanwhile, all signs still point to Lance making his second NFL debut. In addition to receiving all the starting reps in practice, Lance was made available to the media on Friday, his first interview session with local media since his debut against the Arizona Cardinals on October 10.
"Practicing with the first team this week, I don't know if Jimmy will be able to go on Sunday, but for me to be able to get those reps, I think, was huge," Lance said. "Whether I can go on Sunday or not, I think that helped me a lot."
In that debut, a 17–10 loss against the Cardinals, Lance finished an interception for 192 yards on a 15-for 29 and a passer rating of 58.4. He also batted or tipped four passes and took 16 times for 89 yards.
Lance also sprained his left knee in that game, an injury that kept him out and prevented him from getting the required reps in practice. The sprained knee came to the heel due to a finger injury sustained in the precision, which both helped to slow Lance's progress.
But Lance has earned good reviews from teammates and coaches for his recent work on the scout team, and Shanahan said Lance had a "really good" week this week in preparation for the Texans.
For his part, Lance acknowledged that if he starts on Sunday, he will be much ahead of October on several fronts, giving credit to Garoppolo and veteran Nate Sudfeld for helping him.
“It was a long time ago that I played,” Lance said. “From a health standpoint, I think I’ve probably felt the healthiest since I got here. Getting more rep, seeing things like how Jimmy prepares in a short week, things that would have been really hard for me as a rookie, there's no vet in the room, I guess those things Has helped me a ton this year."
In recent weeks, Shanahan has said that Lance has been playing his best in the past month or so since his arrival, and linebacker Fred Warner has said that Lance has been "dicing" the defense in practice.
"I think Trey looked good," said tight end George Kittel. "In the last few months, I think there's been a huge improvement. So, whatever you guys saw in camp, I think he's been better than him. He just looks more mature in the pocket. I think That I saw (linebacker) Fred Warner saying that he is not up to his feet to make plays and he is sitting in the pocket reading it a little more and taking a little more chances in the pocket, which I agree with him. ... He has definitely improved. The past several weeks."
With Garoppolo's status still uncertain, the 49ers raised Sudfeld from the practice squad to the active roster with one of their COVID-19 replacement designations. Sudfeld will support Lance if Garoppolo is unable to play.
Additionally, running back Elijah Mitchell is listed as a suspect against the Texans after missing the last three games with a knee injury. Shanahan said Thursday was Mitchell's best day since the injury and that Friday was not a setback, indicating that Mitchell should remain available unless he has a problem before Sunday. .
"Hopefully this continues all the way through Sunday," Shanahan said. "We'll play Elijah as much as he can handle, so it's about watching him, seeing how his legs work, communicate with him, which is really what [running back coach] Bobby [Turner] He does throughout the game, and when he's tired, if he's going, Bobby doesn't hesitate, he puts Jeff [Wilson Jr.] in there and we've got tons of guys we can put there."