‘He was this close to maybe losing his right eye’ — Chris Simms reveals extra details about Kyle Shanahan’s car accident
San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan was involved in a serious car accident two weeks ago, as reported last week, and Chris Simms added more personal information about what Shanahan is currently dealing with.
Concerning news got reported out of San Francisco over the weekend when it was reported that 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan was involved in a car accident on July 14 and suffered serious injuries as a result of the accident.
The entire situation was bizarre and frankly caught a lot of people off-guard for an accident that happened almost two weeks ago. Regardless, it’s a major story that continues to impact Shanahan and the 49ers heading into training camp.
Shanahan is expected to be limited in his responsibilities with the team throughout training camp, which officially opened on Sunday. While he continues recovering from his injuries, 49ers assistant head coach and offensive line coach Chris Foerster is expected to “assume some of” Shanahan’s duties in the building.
Chris Simms adds more insight to the extent of Kyle Shanahan’s injuries and what he’s dealing with
NBC Sports’ NFL Analyst Chris Simms has a well-known and close personal relationship with the Shanahan’s and provided more insight on Monday to the extent of Shanahan’s injuries and what he’s been dealing with since the accident.
“All of a sudden, one day – from Kyle’s wife Mandy – she texts myself and my wife and it’s like ‘Oh no, Kyle’s been part of some horrible accident’ and she sent us some pictures right off the bat,” Simms said on PFT Live with Mike Florio. “It was like ‘Oh my gosh’ and just to paint the picture, you’ve seen the injury report – the broken ribs, 40 stiches in the face, the broken nose, broken left hand, of course the bad concussion – but when you first see it and it’s fresh and some of the cuts are still wide open, it’s jarring. . .
“He was this close to maybe losing his right eye. The scar is so big right [there]. All of that stuff was just crazy to see. Of course, I’m thinking of my friend. But, yeah, it’s tough. He’s still battling with his concussion… He’s healing, his face looks a whole lot better. But this concussion, of course being a part of that kind of accident, is lingering and it’s giving him issues. He’s certainly still dealing with that.”
When Kyle Shanahan first started noticing symptoms explains the confusing nature of the reporting
After the accident, ESPN reported that paramedics took Shanahan to a local hospital, before being released and no one was cited for the collision. Shanahan had the initial injuries – such as the broken bones and cuts that required stiches – that needed to be repaired. However, the concussions started to show up later.
“It took a few days for him to realize ‘I’m not working the right way,’” Simms added. “At first, you get in a car accident and you know you’re going to feel fuzzy and not normal. But then I feel like it got into Day 6 or 7 and you’re starting to [think] I should start feeling better, I should be thinking more clearly, and things like that. I know he was a little alarmed about not functioning at a high level.”
49ers general manager John Lynch noted that the NFL does not have a defined concussion protocol for staff members, but Shanahan will enter into a similar protocol players go through in order to be cleared. While it’s unlikely Shanahan’s injuries force him to miss any game time in relation to the regular season, it’ll still be a massive blow not having him fully in the building for the start of camp.
“All of these coaches are psychos in a good way. Shanahan is who he is because he’s got a high functioning brain and the ability to multitask and be creative and coach a team and be detailed as well. I don’t think it should be underestimated how big of a deal this is,” Simms explained. “This is concerning, it’s the number one person in the organization who sets the table for the upcoming season. He’s the one that puts the hot poker by everyone’s butt here early in the year to get everybody going.”
We will provide more updates on Shanahan’s status and more news out of the 49ers’ training camp as it becomes available here at A to Z Sports.