San Francisco fans are anxious to get the news that fifth-year pro Jauan Jennings is back working in practice and seriously ramping up his return for the 2025 NFL season.

But, 49ers fans will have to wait longer for that bit of good news. And until he’s back suited up and catching the football, there will be a faction of the fan base that wonders if there’s more to the story.

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49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan was asked on Monday if there is any concern from the coaching staff regarding the severity of Jennings’ calf injury and if it could play out similarly to Christian McCaffrey’s calf injury and Achilles tendonitis that morphed into much worse.

“No. McCaffrey’s was Achilles Tendonitis that had been bothering him for a while and never got better. Jauan is a calf that he missed all last training camp with. It is something that we don’t think will be too serious, but it’s bothering him now. Depending on how much he misses, I mean, I always want guys out there. It helps him, it helps the team. But, Jauan was alright last year too missing some time,” Shanahan said.

It’s in line with the tone that Shanahan struck following the 49ers’ preseason opener against the Denver Broncos on Saturday night. Shanahan was asked point blank if Jennings’ absence is more about securing a new contract.

“No, not at all. And this is actually why Jauan missed OTAs is because of his calf. It’s the same injury he had last year during training camp, which made him miss a couple weeks during training camp last year.

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“We didn’t get him until the end of training camp last year and it’s the same thing on the MRI and it’s the same thing he’s going through. But, hopefully we’ll get him back sooner than later,” Shanahan said.

Jennings led all 49ers wide receivers in receiving yardage last season with 975 yards on 77 catches with six touchdown grabs. As he enters the final year of his current deal, Jennings has reportedly requested a new contract from the 49ers this offseason.

This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: 49ers comment on severity of Jauan Jennings’ calf injury