Javon Kinlaw misses Thursday’s practice due to an illness

Elijah Mitchell and Deebo Samuel practiced for the second day in a row

The 49ers returned to the practice field Thursday. According to the beat reporters that were present, Christian McCaffrey said he felt “great” after sitting out of Wednesday and Thursday’s practice for precautionary reasons.

McCaffrey has separate ankle and knee injuries that are minor. It makes little sense to put McCaffrey on the field during the regular-season finale with the playoffs a week away.

Wide receiver Deebo Samuel and running back Elijah Mitchell participated for the second day in a row. McCaffrey and Samuel are used similarly in the passing game. But would Mitchell resume his role as RB1 before the 49ers acquired McCaffrey?

Nick Bosa and Trent Williams had their usual rest day on Wednesday. Both players returned to the practice field Thursday.

Javon Kinlaw wasn’t spotted at practice during the portion the media was allowed to watch. They did their jobs and reported Kinlaw wasn’t on hand. The 49ers later announced that Kinlaw was absent due to an illness.

Kinlaw saw an uptick in snaps this past week. He played 22 snaps in Week 17 compared to 16 the week before. Here’s Thursday’s practice report –

Did Not Participate:

OL Aaron Banks (ankle, knee)

QB Jimmy Garoppolo (foot)

LB Dre Greenlaw (back)

DT Javon Kinlaw (illness, knee)

RB Christian McCaffrey (ankle, knee)

CB Ambry Thomas (ankle)

Don’t be surprised if Givens and Greenlaw sit out Week 18 and return for the playoffs. The same is true for Aaron Banks, who was seen working out on the side.