49ers Injury Update: McCaffrey, Samuel, Williams, Greenlaw Miss Practice

It isn't positive news, but it was to be expected for the San Francisco 49ers.

Christian McCaffrey (oblique), Deebo Samuel (shoulder), Trent Williams (ankle), and Dre Greenlaw (hamstring) missed Thursday's 49ers practice. Aaron Banks was also missing in action due to an ankle injury, so that is a new one. The bright side to all of this is none of these injuries are severe. Every one of these players are on a day-to-day basis with their injuries.

The injuries to McCaffrey, Samuel, and Williams all occurred in the 49ers' upset loss to the Cleveland Browns. It is part of what made that loss sting exponentially more. At the time, it was up in the air as to the severity of their injuries. The fact that it was unknown until Tuesday or Wednesday made it a bit of a scary situation. Thankfully, the 49ers will not have to worry about any of these players missing significant time.

With that said, each of them has a chance to miss time starting with the Week 7 Monday night matchup with the Minnesota Vikings. Missing the first practice day of the week isn't a cause to panic for their availability. Since they are such pivotal players on the team, if they can get one practice down, then it might be sufficient for the 49ers to play them.

However, I'd argue that the 49ers should withhold McCaffrey, Samuel, and Williams against the Vikings. It'll weaken their offense for sure, but this is a game that they should be able to win. Minnesota isn't a force defensively, especially in comparison to what they just faced in the Browns. The 49ers' defense should be able to suffocate the Vikings' offense all game long since they do not have their best player in Justin Jefferson.

The 49ers need to be thinking big picture here with their three star players. Risking them over one game is not worth it. Even if the 49ers lose, they are still 5-2 and draw much closer to getting their core guys healthier. I'd like to think that is more important than one game. Without McCaffrey, Samuel, and Williams, I don't know if the 49ers have a real shot at winning the Super Bowl.

Take care of them now to be strong later.