Kyle Shanahan talked injuries, C.J Beathard, dealing with 0-8 start after 49ers-Eagles

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan had a little information about the team’s injuries. He discussed the defense playing well and the toughness of C.J. Beathard among other things in his post game press conference. Here’s the full transcript.

On keeping Eagles QB Carson Wentz contained:

“From what I saw out there, our defense played a good game, especially with that challenge and that quarterback. They have a good offense, and I think our defense played one of their better games.”

On six starters getting injured today:

“I didn’t talk to [VP of Medical Services/Head Athletic Trainer Jeff Ferguson] before I came in. I don’t have more on that.”

On the status of T Joe Staley’s injured eye:

“I know he needed stitches and they took a look at his orbital. It was really swollen, and you could see at halftime that he had no chance to get back in. I know he was trying to do everything he could, but he was definitely way too hurt.”

On whether he considered putting QB Brian Hoyer in:

“No. [QB] C.J. [Beathard] was battling. He was in some tough situations. By no means was he perfect, and there were some plays he missed, but that was a tough game to put him in. He never shied away from anything and played extremely tough, but we just have to work on getting better, both him and everyone around him.”

On whether protection was the main problem on offense:

“I don’t think so. There were a lot of issues, but protection is always what you start with. [The Eagles are] one of the better pass rushing teams in the league. We were down a couple guys and then lost some more early. It’s a huge challenge when you have guards playing tackle. At times, we did block them. In the first half, we had some chances on third down but had some drops. When we didn’t protect, they had some sacks and made plays. That’s the challenge of going against a defense like that, and we found that out today.”

On evaluating C.J. Beathard with so many injuries around him:

“I just don’t think he had many opportunities to play very good today. He was put in some tough situations, so I try to evaluate how he handles those situations. [You have to ask] what type of guy he is and if there’s any quit in him. I was very pleased with his demeanor. We got banged up a lot today, but he kept going back out there, stayed aggressive, and played to the best of his ability.”

On trying to prevent further injuries:

“You have to be smart with what you call. We were also down some points too and you want to get back in the game, but there’s a fine line. You have to be smart with screens and things like that, and trying to mix in the run. It is what it is. You can only dress so many guys on game day, so when that happens you have to be able to adjust. We tried our best to do that, but it was pretty tough. They definitely got the best of us.”

On the Eagles scoring two quick touchdowns before halftime:

“We’ve been here before this year, and I think our guys came out and competed in the second half. I was disappointed with the penalty we had on defense that ended up giving them a first down, because they went down and scored. The defense gave us some juice. [CB] Ahkello [Witherspoon] gave us that interception, and I was pleased with the offense to see them respond and get that ball in the end zone. We had a good vibe in our locker room at halftime. Guys weren’t shying away or blaming anyone. They wanted to go out there and fight. I felt a lot more fight and was a lot more proud of our guys than the week before.”

On the play of Ahkello Witherspoon:

“From what I saw, I think he did well. I thought he competed. I know he gave up that go route, which obviously wasn’t a good play, but he had a big turning point in that game and gave us a chance with that interception. It seemed like he challenged guys, but we’ll get on the plane and watch it in more detail. From what I saw, I was pleased.”

On Eric Reid as linebacker today:

“When I looked up there it looked like he made a bunch of plays. Saw him make a bunch of tackles, saw him get to the quarterback one time, get a hit on third down. I was real pleased with our whole defense. We had to get them out there a little too many times, but they were carrying us for most of the game. They got the best of us there at the end, but I was real proud of our defense and the way they played today.”

On the Eagles interception return for a touchdown:

“The defensive back was off and squatted on it. He stemmed in, made a great break on it, and went to the house. He was playing off, reading the quarterback and really wasn’t looking at the receiver. The ball was just a hair inside, and [Eagles CB Jalen Mills] made a great play.”

On the team’s 0-8 start:

“You just have to watch the tape and work on getting better. You have to be strong-minded. You can’t get caught up in that record and all of those things. It’s something that we are extremely disappointed in, but sitting here and talking about it and dwelling on it is not going to help us in the future. We have to come to work tomorrow, and look at this hard to find out where we can get better. I think guys did take a step forward from last week with a few things, especially on defense. We really have to take care of our bodies and get the team healthy, not just on Sundays but throughout the week. We have to find a way to get some of these guys back. It’s going to be that way all year. We have to find a way to get better. There’s no secret message I can say about it. The guys who get better will help us, and if you don’t, we’re going to get worse.”

On the contingency plan if Brandon Fusco went out:

“We would have to play Celek at tackle. One of our guards who had moved to tackle would go back to guard.”