The San Francisco 49ers have dealt with a lot of injuries this season. Among those missing time are running back Christian McCaffrey, receivers Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel, tight end George Kittle, offensive tackle Trent Williams, defensive end Nick Bosa and quarterback Brock Purdy.
Linebacker Fred Warner apparently doesn’t want to join those teammates on the sideline. The seven-year veteran revealed Wednesday that he has been playing for the past seven games with a broken bone in his ankle.
Warner, 28, says he suffered the injury during the 30-13 Week 4 victory over the New England Patriots. The fracture occurred in the first half and Warner did not play the rest of the game. But he has been in the lineup ever since and intends to play Sunday night against the Buffalo Bills.
“It’s something I deal with every game,” Warner told reporters. via Nick Wagoner of ESPN. “I get on that table before every game and I throw it every game just so I can roll.
“But it’s not an excuse. It’s just what it is. That’s the NFL,” he continued. “You’re not going to be healthy. You’ve got to go out there, you’ve got to find ways to execute, play at a high level and win every week.”
In addition to Warner playing in every game since suffering the injury, he has also participated in every practice over the past seven weeks. Only during Week 5, after suffering the fracture, was he limited in practice.
What probably shouldn’t be a surprise is that Warner still leads the 49ers with 84 tackles (50 solo) despite his broken ankle. He has been San Francisco’s leading tackler in each of the previous six seasons. Warner is on pace to surpass 100 tackles for the seventh straight year. Additionally, he has two interceptions, four forced fumbles and one sack.
However, Warner’s game has been affected by the injury. Of his 11 missed tackles, nine have come since he hurt his ankle. according to the associated press. He also allowed 31 receptions on 31 targets.
The three-time All-Pro later said he probably shouldn’t have said anything about his ankle, but added that the fracture probably won’t heal until after the season.
“Any time you break a bone, if you continue to play with it, usually the bone won’t be able to heal itself,” he added. “So we have to keep fighting.”