49ers will face significant adversity ahead of Week 1

Week 1 already brought tough circumstances for both of the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers. The division rivals are set to face off in Melbourne, Australia on Thursday night of the NFL’s opening week. The league set accelerated training camp and preseason schedules in order to accommodate intense international travel.

Now things are even tougher for San Francisco. Head coach Kyle Shanahan was in a car accident earlier in July and suffered a concussion, a broken hand, a broken nose, and several cracked ribs. Shanahan’s participation in 49ers training camp is expected to be limited at the start as he recovers from the concussion. Offensive line coach and assistant head coach Chris Foerster will step into Shanahan’s shoes until the head coach returns full-time.

Thankfully, both Shanahan and the driver of the other car survived. Police stated that neither drugs nor alcohol played a role in the collision.

Shanahan and Sean McVay are heading into their 10th seasons with the 49ers and Rams, respectively.

Football aside, the road to Week 1 was already uphill. San Francisco now has more adversity to fight through with the regular season on the horizon.