The 49ers head into Sunday's NFC West showdown against the Rams with a 4-0 record, and they're doing it without a few of their key players.
Fullback Kyle Juszczyk's knee injury has him out for four to six weeks, right tackle Mike McGlinchey is sidelined with a knee injury of his own, and left tackle Joe Staley is expected to miss multiple games with a broken fibula. While losing all three players hurts the 49ers, going with Juszczyk might sting the most.
"Losing Juice, that's a different deal," coach Kyle Shanahan told Greg Papa on "49ers Game Plan," which is scheduled to air at 8 p.m. Saturday on NBC Bay Area. "Juice allows us to do a bunch of stuff -- the pressure we put on him."
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Shanahan highlighted both Juszczyk's physical and mental game as what sets him apart from others, but the 49ers are figuring out a way to make use with what they got by using the tight ends at fullback.
"We move them there -- that's what most teams do," Shanahan explained. "We always have to have a plan in games if we do lose Juice, and we're not going to be able to do everything we do with Juice. You can't really replace him, but the offense is going to be drastically different."
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49ers insider Matt Maiocco detailed the uniqueness of Juszczyk's skills and how detrimental it could be for the team to lose him. It's not an insurmountable challenge to overcome, but the 49ers certainly will miss Juice.