The 49ers host the Saints on Sunday, during the second week of the preseason. The two teams were scheduled to conduct joint practices in the days preceding the game.
Now, not.
Saints coach Dennis Allen told reporters that 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan raised the issue on Saturday.
“Kyle reached out to me yesterday, making me aware that they have some things going on in terms of having enough able bodies to have some good practices,” Allen said, via Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group.
Via Matt Barrows of TheAthletic.com, Shanahan told reporters after Saturday’s preseason game that 23 players missed the team’s most recent practice, for various reasons.
One of those, of course, is receiver Brandon Aiyuk, who counts against the 90-man roster but who isn’t practicing. It’s all the more reason for Shanahan to be irritated by Aiyuk’s situation — and maybe this will be the catalyst for finally resolving it.