A handful of players spoke during Wednesday’s media availability

The San Francisco 49ers had some players available to speak to the media on Wednesday afternoon. With the offseason program underway, the players spoke about that and the offseason in general. Here’s a run down for the Niners media twitter that were on hand. Let’s start with Jerrick McKinnon.

McKinnon and his recovery

The 49ers RB said he thinks it’s realistic he could be ready for training camp, but isn’t making any predictions. “It feels good. I’m confident about the strides that I’ve made.”

McKinnon spoke on the injury history at the RB position. “A big reason the 49ers stockpiled running backs was to insulate themselves from potential injuries, which decimated the position last year. We can all do the same thing.”

McKinnon said he expects the 49ers to have one of the best RB groups in the NFL, and they’d win any 4×100 race against any other team easily. That was funny.

George Kittle is not human

George Kittle said he suffered “fractured rib cartilage” on the 49ers’ third play of the game versus the Raiders. So his spectacular one-handed catch-and-run came after that injury. “I thought it was going to hurt much more than it did,” Kittle said. This play happened after that:

Good thing he didn’t get hit. This isn’t news, we’ve known he played through a fractured rib. The fact that he was so productive over the final two months is pretty hard to believe. 48 catches for 793 yards and 3 touchdowns over the last 2 months. He did that with a fractured rib and a 3rd string QB. Unreal.

Jimmy G having some fun

Jimmy Garoppolo seemed to be in good spirits. Apparently he dared George Kittle to tweet at Antonio Brown this offseason, so Kittle did. And then that all happened.

Garoppolo spoke about his recovery as well. He said that “the first month or two are the worst. After that you get running and start to feel like yourself again.”

Jimmy G was asked “How has George adapted to his higher profile this offseason?” He answered, with a wry smile, “George who?” I love when teammates go back and forth and are just having a good time. I’m seeing a lot of healthy banter online. Love that.

Garoppolo also said it’s “all but certain” that he’ll wear a knee brace.

Buckner is licking his chops

That’s what the addition of Dee Ford has done to the 49ers interior defensive line.

“I was very happy. He has one of the best first steps in the league. He opens up a lot for the guys on the inside.” Buckner referenced Chris Jones having a monster season in Kansas City last year. Buckner said that the expectation is the defensive line to be dominant and he expects the unit to be great.
Buckner steered clear of any contract talk, saying it’s “very, very early in the process.”

Finally, Buckner said he’s have no issues if the 49ers used their first-round pick on Quinnen Williams, whose ideal position seems to be the same three-technique spot Buckner plays. He said the Alabama DL could play NT next to him in SF’s’ new “wide 9” style.