NFC Notes: 49ers, Cardinals, Rams, Seahawks, Russell Wilson

49ers

Bears HC Matt Eberflus isn’t quite sure how the 49ers are planning to use QB Trey Lance in Week 1.

“You’re projecting a little bit,” Eberflus said, via Curtis Pashelka of the San Jose Mercury News. “You have to project how they’re going to use the young man and where they’re going to use them in their offense. We certainly have an idea of what this offense looks like. But how they’re going to use him, no one really knows. You have to use your rules, have your calls and make sure you’re sound.”

• 49ers HC Kyle Shanahan said TE George Kittle did not practice on Wednesday due to a hamstring injury and is unsure if he’ll be available for Week 1. (Matt Maiocco)

Cardinals

• Cardinals HC Kliff Kingsbury said QB Colt McCoy was placed on injured reserve after suffering a strained calf on Monday. (Josh Weinfuss)
• Kingsbury said DL J.J. Watt is considered day-to-day with a calf injury and he did not practice on Wednesday. (Ian Rapoport)
• Kingsbury said LG Justin Pugh (groin) and C Rodney Hudson (knee) are considered game-time decisions. (Weinfuss)
• Kingsbury confirmed that TE Maxx Williams (ACL) is “full-go” for Week 1. (Weinfuss)
• The Cardinals hosted QB Jarrett Guarantano for a visit on Tuesday. He signed to the practice squad Wednesday. (Aaron Wilson)

Rams

It was all hugs and smiles between DL Aaron Donald and DE Von Miller after they won the Super Bowl with the Rams, but now things will be different and the two will line up for different teams on Thursday night as Miller has moved on to the Bills.

“If anything, we had conversations more about leadership, me being more of a vocal guy,” Donald said in his press conference. “I give a lot of credit, just obviously, in that playoff run having those conversations with Von — I feel like he challenged me with some things as a vocal leader and I took that to heart and I stepped up when we needed [me] to. So I always will respect and love Von for that. We created some special things. We miss him, but he’s on the opposite side now, so, you know, he’s the enemy.”

• According to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport, free agent WR Odell Beckham Jr. is not expected to be recovered from his torn ACL until early November.
• Rapoport mentions the Rams and Bills are two teams that remain interested in Beckham but it makes the “most sense” for the receiver to wait until late October to sign a contract. 

Seahawks

• With the Seahawks set to host Broncos QB Russell Wilson in his first game back in Seattle in Week 1, ESPN’s Brady Henderson looks at how the relationship between the two fell apart. Wilson thought the coaching staff was holding him back from the big goals he had for his legacy, while Henderson uses a story from a pick Wilson threw on a poor decision in 2020 to illustrate the frustration the team had with him: “What are we doing here? Are we trying to win games or are we trying to win MVP?”
• It’s been reported by others, but Henderson reiterates Seahawks GM John Schneider attending pro days for top QB prospects like Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen annoyed Wilson and his camp, with a front office source saying: “They were f—ing pissed.”
• Seattle also flirted with trading Wilson to the Browns for the No. 1 pick in 2018, which prompted Wilson to secure a no-trade clause on his next contract. 
• Henderson writes the two sides butted heads over the state of the offensive line as well, particularly after the 2020 season. Wilson thought the Seahawks were getting what they paid for by minimally investing in the position, while the front office took the stance that because quality OL were rare, mediocre ones got overpaid in free agency and Wilson’s contract prevented them from being able to afford them. 
• He adds Wilson didn’t feel like the team gave him a good enough answer, which is what prompted him to air his frustrations publicly after the 2020 season in a move that caught the Seahawks front office off guard and made them angry. They didn’t do anything right away to calm things down and sources from both the team and Wilson’s camp say there was a heated exchange between Schneider and Wilson’s agent about potential trade destinations. 
• Things reached a peak when Wilson’s agent released a public list of four teams Wilson would waive his no-trade clause for. However, Henderson says Seahawks HC Pete Carroll was staunchly opposed to trading Wilson and believed he could work things out. 
• After the 2021 season when Wilson was injured and the Seahawks missed the playoffs, Wilson and Carroll sat down to discuss their future, a front office source told Henderson: “That’s when s— got real.”
• Henderson explains some within the Seahawks front office, including Carroll, thought Wilson’s mobility was waning as he aged, and that his best days as an elite quarterback were behind him: “I just felt like he’s a descending player. Is he going to be able to be a true pocket passer at the end of his career and just stand there and drop the ball off to his checkdowns? He’s never done that. I can’t tell you he’s going to be able to do that.”
• Combined with another mega-deal, like the one the Broncos just gave Wilson, on the horizon, and the Seahawks’ front office was ready to reset with a cheap quarterback like they did when Wilson first arrived in Seattle: “A declining player and then what the [contract] ask was going to be the next time, which would have been his third time. It’s like, ‘No, let’s play really good defense, let’s run the s— out of the ball. That’s how we won a world championship.’ That’s what we’ve kept going back to.”
• For what it’s worth, Henderson talked to Seahawks coaches who didn’t buy that Wilson’s game is about to fall off a cliff: “The 4.5 speed where he’s scrambling and now he’s running down the field for big chunks of yards, that might not come anymore. But the feel for pocket presence, he’s always going to have that. … I have no reservation in saying that Russ is going to continue to compete with his style, and then as that begins to slow down a little bit, I think he’ll adjust. That’s just who he is. He finds a way to win.”
• Henderson reports the Saints, Giants and Commanders all inquired with the Seahawks about trading for Wilson, but he had his heart set on Denver. Seattle kept the Saints involved to drive the price up for the Broncos with another bidder, as well as because Schneider wanted QB Drew Lock back in return.