Golden Nuggets: Who do you want to see step up on Sunday?

Hutchinson: As 49ers lament another injury on turf, a look at what the data actually shows

“Players know their bodies. They know what feels unnatural. We can all see and have seen when players get a cleat stuck in the turf in a way that doesn’t happen on grass. Studies continue to support that their concerns are legitimate.”

Emmanuel Sanders reflects on the end of Super Bowl LIV, Garoppolo’s overthrown pass

“It’s one of those things that I feel like a lot of people still think about, but for me, I don’t think about it too much,” Sanders said. “Because at the end of the day some people say it came down to just that throw, but it didn’t come down to that throw... When you look at Deebo [Samuel], when you look at Jimmy, when you look at George [Kittle], when you look at Kyle [Shanahan], when you look at Nick [Bosa], when you look at everybody on that team, everybody can sit back and look at themselves in the mirror and say, ‘Damn, if I would have made this play or did this or did that… it would have never come down to that.’”

Steve Young explains why he admires Jimmy Garoppolo

“I’m super happy about that, and I think he should be too because the thing that I was worried about a couple of weeks ago when things were kind of 1-2 and feeling funny, that somehow he and Kyle could get at each other, and there was this thing out of Denver, I was just feeling funny about it. No way.”

Wilson’s secret speed, attitude help 49ers RB excel as starter

“And each season, Wilson works his way back up the ladder to take on a significant role in the 49ers’ offense...It is a fact of football that Wilson said he learned from an early age. He said it took him a couple of years out of high school to earn his spot in college. And, even then, he regularly hosted running back recruits — players who potentially could come to the team and aim to take his job.”

It’s early, but San Francisco 49ers defense is on historically elite pace

“Many of those hours were spent drawing plays for the offense, but the time Shanahan valued most was sitting in on defensive staff meetings. Every day after practice, Shanahan learned the nuances of the Tampa-2 scheme from defensive coaching luminaries such as Monte Kiffin, Mike Tomlin, Rod Marinelli and Raheem Morris.”

Branch: What’s happened to 49ers’ Ambry Thomas? DeMeco Ryans’ answer is telling (paywall)

“DeMeco Ryans fielded 19 questions at his weekly news conference Thursday and his shortest answer by a wide margin — just 12 words — was in response to a question about cornerback Ambry Thomas.”

Branch: A year after 49ers traded for Charles Omenihu, it’s all starting to click (paywall)

“It’s not going be given to you,” Omenihu said. “I think that’s the big thing for me in my career, just understanding because you have this certain type of build and size, it doesn’t mean that it gives you a pass to be playing. You’ve got to show them that you can do it. Earn it. You’ve gradually got to keep building that. So I’m gradually on my way to earning it, in my opinion.”

Silver: 49ers’ Lynch, Shanahan needed to get one right, and did with Charvarius Ward (paywall)

“All offseason, I’ve been working on my game,” Ward told me after Sunday’s victory over the Panthers. “I’ve worked on catching the ball, press technique and my off-the-ball technique, too. Playing off the ball is such a big thing, and I wasn’t as familiar with it (in K.C.). Now, I’m way more confident in my backpedal. But day in and day out, I’ve been working on my game.”