As the 49ers gear up for another Super Bowl pursuit, a key member of San Francisco's defense could be back in the fold shortly.
Talanoa Hufanga, who hasn't been on the field since tearing his ACL last November, is poised to rejoin 49ers practice in the next couple of weeks, coach Kyle Shanahan revealed to reporters at Levi's Stadium on Saturday.
While proclaiming his confidence in San Francisco's safeties, Shanahan shared Hufanga's expected return timetable and how his addition to the group puts the 49ers in a great spot.
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“I feel great about our safeties right now. It'll be real exciting to get [Hufanga] back, I think in a week or two," Shanahan said after Saturday's practice. "But I think him not being in there, [George Odum] has really taken advantage of his reps. I think he's playing as good as he is played at the safety level. Ji’Ayir [Brown] just getting that experience last year, it's helped him out so much.
"We’ve got a number of young guys in here which are competing hard. And we do have some older vets here with a lot of knowledge who have played some football, guys like Erik Harris and stuff like that. So we’ve got a good group. I don't rule out anything as it goes. You never know how to play out. But I feel good about our group, what we got right now.”
Shanahan further clarified when exactly San Francisco projects Hufanga to be back in the mix, targeting the week the 49ers have a joint practice scheduled with the New Orleans Saints on Aug. 15 in Southern California.
“I think he's going to get checked up when we go down to L.A. and scrimmage," Shanahan said. I think down there is where we kind of were expecting around that time.”
San Francisco 49ers
Hufanga tore his ACL in the third quarter of San Franciso's 27-14 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last season, leading to the 49ers eventually signing veteran safety Logan Ryan to fill the void left by the All-Pro safety.
With second-year safety Ji'Ayir Brown being an early training camp standout, Hufanga's projected imminent return further fortifies San Francisco's robust secondary that also includes a dynamic cornerback duo in Charvarius Ward and Deommodre Lenoir.
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