NFC Notes: 49ers, Cardinals, Chandler Jones, Seahawks

49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk slid down the depth chart ahead of Sunday’s game against the Lions, however, HC Kyle Shanahan insists that it wasn’t due to performance, more so that he felt WR Trent Sherfield deserved the opportunity behind him.

“No, I just think he’s got a better person behind him this year in training camp,” Shanahan said, via SF Chronicle. “And with Aiyuk missing some time and how well Trent Sherfield played … it wasn’t a very tough decision … I thought he’d get a few more targets, but when guys are rotating that much, 50/50, I don’t really ask much who’s in. I’m good with either one of them getting the ball, whoever is in there at the time. It doesn’t matter to me.”

Shanahan was later asked how Aiyuk felt about his diminished role.

“I’m not sure, I haven’t got to talk to him yet,” Shanahan said. “I’m sure I’ll talk to him before Wednesday. I think he had an idea of that going into the game. That’s how practice has been the last couple of weeks, so I don’t think it was a surprise to him. But that’s something I’m sure I’ll talk to him about sooner than later.”

Shanahan wasn’t also certain if DT Javon Kinlaw would be able to return to practice on Wednesday.

“I’m not expecting it,” Shanahan said. “I’m hoping it. I know that he’s got a chance to. He had a really good last four days. He was looking good on Saturday. We were able to get him a good workout on Sunday. And each day has been an improvement.”

• The Athletic’s Matt Barrows says the 49ers keep dealing with swelling in Kinlaw’s knee that returns whenever he has extended action. 
• Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer thinks 49ers DE Nick Bosa has a chance to be the NFL’s first $30 million a year defensive player when he signs his contract extension. He’ll be eligible for the first time in 2022. 
• The 49ers’ injury settlement with OT Shon Coleman resulted in them only incurring $192,500 in dead money instead of the original $1.13 million. (David Lombardi)
• Shanahan said he’d be “surprised” if DL Arik Armstead (abductor) wasn’t available for Week 2. (Eric Branch)

Cardinals

• Regarding his contract situation, Cardinals OLB Chandler Jones said he’s not focusing on the matter: “I think I play best when I’m not thinking about my contract. If my agent wants to talk about it, he can.” (Darren Urban)
• Jones confirmed that he requested a trade from Arizona this offseason and deferred any questions to GM Steve Keim or his agent. 
• The Cardinals brought in DL Kobe Jones, OT David Sharpe, LB John Daka, DT Auzoya Alufohai for tryouts on Tuesday. (Aaron Wilson)
• Arizona also hosted OT Alex Taylor for a visit. (Aaron Wilson)

Seahawks

Seahawks HC Pete Carroll is happy to have S Jamal Adams back and healthy this season, especially with the versatility he brings to Seattle’s defense. 

“I was watching some cut-up this morning and was watching him play with one arm last year,” Carroll said, via Pro Football Talk. “He made a sack and knocked a ball down with one arm down by his side. I’m so grateful that he’s not playing like that anymore. It’s hard to imagine a guy playing football really with one arm. That’s what he was doing, and he did an admirable job to get that done. He’s healthy and ready to go so if we can keep him on the good side of that then it’s going to be really exciting to watch because he’s a really difficult player to deal with. It’s going to be kind of a rolling ball of information coming at us, we will take the info and see what we show and what he’s done, and then continue. There’s nothing that we can’t do but we can’t do everything at the same time. The pallet and we have all of the colors, we got everything we need. It’s going to be really fun to watch him play.”