During training camp, 49ers general manager John Lynch has said on multiple radio interviews that he misses, well, training camp.
Lynch, a 15-year NFL veteran, played in the era of longer camps that featured two-a-day practices and plenty of contact. He recently expressed mock indignation at what he witnessed on a practice field during a 49ers off day: players getting massages, while others did yoga.
However, after the first 11 training-camp practices of the Kyle Shanahan era, 10 of which have been in full pads, Lynch is no doubt thrilled about this: The 49ers’ sessions this summer are far more physical than those of Shanahan’s recent predecessors, Chip Kelly, Jim Tomsula and even hard-driving Jim Harbaugh.
“It’s different from last year,” tight end Vance McDonald said. “Coach Shanahan — the mind-set he tries to give us every single day before we get out there is: ‘We’re going to be physical.’ We’ve got to practice being physical, otherwise you’re going to get in the game and you’re trying to force yourself to do something that’s not a habit.”
Defensive tackle Chris Jones, 27, who has also been in training camps with the Texans, Patriots and Dolphins, gives Shanahan high marks for his ability to make him hurt.
“I don’t know if it’s just me getting older, but I can definitely feel these practices,” Jones said. “These are definitely very physical practices. I’d put them up there at the top of what I’ve been through.”
The tone might have been set during the third padded practice of camp when running back Carlos Hyde delivered the most memorable hit of the summer. Hyde finished a touchdown run by lowering his shoulder and sending flat-footed rookie cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon flying from the goal line to Gilroy.
Shanahan’s reaction? Witherspoon should have reacted to the play more quickly, so Hyde didn’t have a 15-yard head of steam.
“I think Carlos taught him a little bit of a lesson that will kind of help him in the long run,” Shanahan said.
Shanahan and defensive coordinator Robert Saleh have said they don’t want players tackled to the ground, but they also want to instill a culture of toughness. And that explains why it’s been business as usual after the latest player hits the turf.
In fact, the 49ers clearly expect it. Despite the very physical nature of the practices, it’s notable that the 49ers haven’t had a training-camp fight (or an inordinate amount of injuries). The running backs and wide receivers invariably get up and sprint downfield after getting tackled.
On Saturday, wide receiver Aldrick Robinson got whacked by safety Eric Reid and the hit drew “oohs” from the crowd during the public practice at Levi’s Stadium. Robinson was asked about Reid’s shot, and why he and his teammates haven’t lost their cool in camp.
“It’s football, so you’re going to be banging around,” Robinson said. “But we’re close. The guys in that locker room, we’re a brotherhood. We know it’s not intentional. … It’s just, ‘I’m playing football.’”
The message has been delivered by Shanahan: In order to prepare for football games, the 49ers need to, within reason, approximate those games in practice.
“It’s a physical game,” guard Zane Beadles said. “We want to be able to run the ball and use that to throw the ball. We want to play physical on defense. The only way to do that is to come out here and play physical.”
During the offseason, Saleh said he wants his defense to play with “extreme violence” and he hit the same note this week when looking ahead to the preseason opener Friday in Kansas City.
“I can’t wait to see us tackle,” Saleh said. “I can’t wait to see us hit. I can’t wait to see the violence at which we play.”
For his part, running back Tim Hightower, who played with Shanahan in Washington in 2011, notes his outside-zone running scheme isn’t suited for backs who hesitate.
“This is not a finesse system,” Hightower said. “You have to be able to take some 0-, 0-, 1-yard gains to set up some other things. Not bouncing things back. Not cutting outside. You have to be true to the system.”
Shanahan clearly has a system in place to prepare the 49ers for the regular season.
And he also has a message for players who get knocked to the ground by a teammate before the real games begin.
“If they want to get them back,” Shanahan said, “get them (back on the next play) — in the right way.”
Eric Branch is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: EBranch@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Eric_Branch
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