49ers’ Christian McCaffrey turns to former trainer of Conor McGregor to retain edge beyond 30 (paywall)
“McCaffrey did the usual physical exercise, too, but Portal does not so neatly identify as a strength and conditioning coach and especially not a football trainer. This appealed to McCaffrey as he searched for a new layer to his training and recovery regimen.
“It’s almost too much to even give you an answer with words,” McCaffrey said, “but it was a heck of an experience. … He’s a brilliant mind
when it comes to movement, the body, the mind, everything.”
49ers’ Kyle Shanahan built a career on quick decisions. A concussion makes lunch feel impossible (paywall)
“Shanahan occasionally closed his eyes when he spoke because doing so, he said, felt better when there was too much stimulus. It can be disorienting when multiple people speak to him, and he said the music that pulsates when he observes part of practice was “killing” him. He’s dealing with regular headaches and fatigue and, of course, there’s his indecisiveness: His lunch decisions can require as much thought as how to plan the 49ers’ schedule in the week before their regular-season opener in Melbourne, Australia.
The team’s doctors have told Shanahan his injured brain needs to push through pain — to a point. He has a numerical scale to judge the intensity of his headaches — from 1 to 6 — and that’s served as a guide as he’s watched practice film and tackled other duties before leaving the facility far earlier than he’s accustomed.
“The whole thing that I used to think was you lay in a dark room and rest — and that’s not it,” Shanahan said. “When your pain’s a 2, they want you to do something to bring it up to a 4. But as soon as it gets there, you’re supposed to stop and let it come down. And then just keep building that muscle.
“(On Monday), I was able to watch all the film and I felt like I never got to a 4. And it really excited me. I didn’t have as bad of a headache. And then I got home, and my head started hurting because I just get fatigued. … But it’s so much better. I know I’m going to be all right.”
Albert Breer Empties His 49ers Notebook From Training Camp Stop in Santa Clara
“This isn’t a faux absence. Shanahan’s not disconnected. But offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak has the walkie talkie that goes to Brock Purdy’s helmet, and the head coach is watching like a personnel guy might at training camp. For now, the Niners are encouraged with Shanahan’s progress, with the caveat that it hasn’t been, and won’t be, linear. There’ll be ups and downs. He’s contributing where he can. His body is healing nicely. The concussion is lingering a bit. The hope is he’s back soon. And as for what the team is missing most at the moment, everyone I asked brought up the absence of his team meetings. Rather than try and replicate them, the Niners have put those on ice for now, breaking into offensive and defensive meetings with the coordinators for the time they’re scheduled. We’ve got more coming on all that tomorrow.”
Ricky Pearsall misses 49ers training camp practice with concerning knee flare-up
“Tight end Jake Tonges, who could play a big role with George Kittle’s status uncertain early in the season, is having a good camp. He caught a pair of passes from Jones on Wednesday.”
The Good and Not So Good from Day 3 of 49ers Camp: Ricky Pearsall Injures Knee Again
“Intercepted his second pass in three days of camp. Today, he intercepted a pass that was intended for Jacob Cowing and thrown by Mac Jones (more on him in a minute). Jack Jones takes lots of risks and gets burned occasionally, but he’s also a playmaker, arguably the biggest one in the secondary. Renardo Green is good as well, but he’s not a playmaker….[Stout] gave up a 10-yard catch to Robinson on 3rd and 7, but also broke up two short passes that were intended for Stribling. Stout is having an outstanding training camp, but he hasn’t faced any elite wide receivers yet. He’ll have a tougher task when the season starts and he has to face Puka Nacua.”
49ers injuries (including to Ricky Pearsall) mounting again, while Brock Purdy rebounds (paywall)
“Following a Monday practice in which aggressive defensive backs got their hands on a lot of passes, Purdy and the other quarterbacks had a measure of revenge. Purdy was 14-of-18 during the team portion of practice, including on a crisp crossing-route throw to Demarcus Robinson that was just beyond the reach of linebacker Fred Warner.”
49ers offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak shares training camp updates
“San Francisco 49ers offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak spoke with reporters after Wednesday’s training camp practice. Here’s everything he had to say.”
49ers work out 3 wide receivers after the Ricky Pearsall injury news
“Bachman, listed at 6’, 190 pounds, was with the Raiders in 2025. The 30-year-old caught two passes for 12 yards with Vegas last year and had three receptions for 31 yards in 2024. Bachman was an undrafted free agent out of the 2019 NFL Draft.
Eskridge is a name that should sound familiar. He was a second-round draft pick by the Seahawks back in 2021. Eskridge spent the previous two seasons in Mike McDaniel’s offense. He’s totaled seven receptions for 106 yards during that time. Eskridge is on the smaller side, at 5’9”, 190 pounds.
Irwin is the biggest of the three, at 6’2”, 200 pounds. Irwin went to Stanford, where he was an undrafted free agent out of the 2019 NFL Draft as well. Irwin’s entire career was with the Bengals. He last recorded a statistic in 2024. The majority of Irwin’s production came in 2022 and 2023. Irwin combined for 40 receptions and 547 receiving yards in those two seasons. His season-high was 34 receiving yards in three other seasons.“
