Fred warner injury 49ers lose top LB Fred Warner to season-ending ankle injury
Since entering the league in 2018, San Francisco 49ers linebacker Fred Warner has missed only one of a possible 122 games due to injury.
That’s why his teammates were surprised when Warner left the field in the first quarter of Sunday’s 30-19 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with a fractured and dislocated right ankle.
49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said after the game that Warner’s injury will require season-ending surgery.
“He’s one of our best players, a great leader, so obviously, it’s a big blow,” Shanahan said. “I feel bad for Fred right now.
Warner suffered this terrible injury with just eight minutes left in the opening quarter. On first-and-ten from Tampa Bay’s 36, running back Rachad White ran for a 10-yard gain around left tackle. As Warner tried to get around White, who dove into him, Niners safety Ji’Air Brown knocked White down, and Brown’s foot struck the back of Warner’s ankle.
Brown reacted quickly, knowing Warner could be seriously injured, and teammates immediately knelt with their hands on their heads as they watched San Francisco medical staff surround Warner.
After the game, Brown became emotional and described Warner’s loss, describing a player who was like a “big brother” to him.
“I was right there when it happened,” Brown said. “Seeing him fall, a player who never falls, you understand? It’s very tiring. I think it kind of exhausted the stadium. Everyone felt that way.”
A few minutes after Warner’s injury, the Niners’ medical and training staff applied an air cast to his right foot and ankle and he was taken to the locker room on a trolley. Before he left, Niners players wished him well, as they were still unable to grasp the severity of the injury.
Wide receiver John Jennings said he had to take anti-nausea medication because seeing Warner leave with the injury made him “sick to his stomach,” while others expressed shock at seeing a player who had made a career out of it.
Left tackle Trent Williams said, “It’s heartbreaking.” “Fred is not only one of the best linebackers to ever play the game, but he’s the lifeblood of this team, not just this defense. It’s one thing to see someone collapse and go into the blue tent, and no one knows what’s going on. When you see a player get injured like that, it’s a real shock. It’s really hard to keep that intensity going and play the game as if it never happened.”
With Warner in the locker room, the 49ers chose second-year linebacker Tatum Bethune to play middle linebacker, although weakside linebacker Dee Winters handled the communication duties with defensive coordinator Robert Saleh.
Although the 49ers gave up touchdown drives to the Bucs on three of their first four possessions after Warner’s departure, Bethune led the team with 10 tackles. Shanahan indicated after the game that Bethune would get his first chance to replace Warner for the rest of the season.
Bethune, who was selected in the seventh round of the 2024 draft, has made one NFL start, the 2024 season finale at Arizona, in which he made three tackles on 39 defensive snaps.
“You prepare for similar reasons as a starter,” Bethune said. “It was unfortunate that Fred got injured, but that’s why we’re all professionals and we all have a job to do.”
Even as Warner was carted to the locker room, teammates said he was still doing his best to motivate them to beat the Bucs. Warner remained at Raymond James Stadium for the entire match, and Shanahan asked him to address the team in the locker room after the game.
Warner’s message: There’s still a lot of football left, and the Niners can achieve a lot without him.
“It’s definitely tough to lose him and he’s our brother and it’s sad, but we still have a lot of football left,” linebacker Luke Gifford said. “And we have all the tools to win the game.”
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