The San Francisco 49ers are one win away from the top seed in the NFC Playoffs, an NFC West title, and a first-round BYE in the postseason.

As the 49ers prepare for a winner-take-all matchup against their rival Seattle Seahawks in Week 18, the status of star linebacker Fred Warner has come into question.

While Warner, who has been sidelined since mid-October due to a dislocated and fractured right ankle, will not return in time for San Francisco’s matchup against Seattle, the four-time Pro Bowler is getting closer to putting the bads back on.

During Monday morning’s edition of The Carmichael Dave Show with Jason Ross, The Athletic’s Matt Barrows joined the show to share his thoughts on the 49ers’ thrilling win over the Chicago Bears, look ahead to a massive matchup against the Seahawks on Saturday, and much more, including sharing a status update on Warner.

On Warner, Barrows seemed optimistic that we will see the linebacker return during a potential 49ers postseason run. However, it would bode well for San Francisco to earn the first-round BYE and avoid the Wild Card round.

“I don’t think it would be for the Wild Card round, for example. If they lose to Seattle, I don’t think that you’ll see Fred Warner in the first game,” Barrows said. “Now, if they get the bye and they’re in the divisional, I think it’s 50/50 whether you see him.”

If the 49ers can defeat the Seahawks and secure a first-round BYE, it would set Warner up for a potential return on January 17th or 18th at Levi’s Stadium.

Barrows laid out a potential return-to-action plan for Warner, who could play limited snaps in the divisional round game before ramping up in the later rounds.

“They’ve had all sorts of issues with that strong side linebacker role. Maybe that’s what he plays,” Barrows said. “You let Tatum Bethune be your every-down linebacker, and then you sort of get Fred Warner back into the stream by giving him, I don’t know, 12 snaps in that divisional round game.

“Depending on how he reacts to that, I mean, if they’re in the championship game, I think you’d need a team of horses to keep Fred Warner from playing in that one. And then, if it’s the Super Bowl, you’d better bring an army because, yeah, he’s playing. Fred Warner is gonna find a way to play in that game in his own stadium.”

Be sure to listen to and watch the entire interview with The Athletic’s San Francisco 49ers beat writer, Matt Barrows, right here or on the Sactown Sports 1140 YouTube page.

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Listen to The Carmichael Dave Show with Jason Ross from 6 – 10 a.m. PST, Monday through Friday, on Sactown Sports 1140.

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Brock Purdy passed for three touchdowns and ran for two more and Christian McCaffrey had 181 scrimmage yards and a score as the host San Francisco 49ers edged the Chicago Bears 42-38 on Sunday night in Santa Clara, Calif.

San Francisco (12-4) went ahead on a 38-yard touchdown pass from Purdy to Jauan Jennings with 2:15 to go before holding on against cardiac Chicago.

The Bears (11-5) were unable to add to their NFL-record six victories when trailing in the final two minutes of regulation. Chicago drove to the San Francisco 2-yard line on its final possession, including a fourth-and-5 conversion from the 26, before Caleb Williams threw incomplete on the final play.

San Francisco can clinch the top seed in the NFC playoffs with a win against visiting Seattle in Week 18. Chicago, which secured the NFC North title with Green Bay’s loss Saturday, will be the conference’s second or third seed.

Brock Purdy accounts for 5 TDs as 49ers hang on in shootout with Bears

Upcoming San Francisco 49ers Schedule

Saturday, January 3rd – vs. Seattle Seahawks – 5:00 PM PT (Final game of regular season)

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