When 49ers linebacker Fred Warner suffered a fractured and dislocated ankle, the team immediately announced he was done for the season. Warner isn’t so sure.
49ers General Manager John Lynch stressed today that the team will follow the recommendations of the medical staff, and doctors don’t believe Warner would be able to return even if the 49ers make it to the Super Bowl. But Lynch added that Warner believes he can rehab well enough to get back on the field.
“I mean, the docs say it’s probably on the wrong side of the range that they would suggest,” Lynch said on 49ers Game Plan. “But even the docs with Fred say, ‘You know what, let him rehab as if he’s coming back for something and we’ll see where he’s at.”
Lynch said Warner tells him “every day” that he thinks he’ll be able to play before the postseason is over. But Lynch said that will be up to the team’s medical staff, not to Warner.
“I think it’s outside the realm, and I promise you, it’s our duty, with a player like Fred, not to ever put himself in harm’s way in terms of not being ready,” Lynch said. “And so we’ll follow the orders of the doctors. They’ll control this, but Fred is going to push the limits, and he is doing everything possible. He lives in a hyperbaric chamber [for] two, three hours a day. He’s here all the time. He’s unbelievable, this guy. It’s what made him who he is.”
