NFC Notes: 49ers, Rams, Seahawks

49ers

49ers HC Kyle Shanahan was adamant that he isn’t close to starting first-round QB Trey Lance over QB Jimmy Garoppolo.

“Trey’s our backup quarterback. This isn’t the preseason. We’re not just going back and forth all the time,” Shanahan said, via Cam Inman. “Trey goes in for specific plays or things we want to do.”

• Shanahan said 49ers GM John Lynch was in contact with Richard Sherman before he landed with the Buccaneers: “John (Lynch) has been in touch with him a ton. … We would love to have Richard here but it makes sense why he went to Tampa.” (Cam Inman)
• Shanahan said TE George Kittle (calf) is expected to be fine for Week 4. (Matt Barrows)

Rams

Rams WR Cooper Kupp has been the hottest receiver in the NFL through the opening three weeks. Juiced by the arrival of QB Matthew Stafford, Kupp has 25 receptions for 367 yards and five touchdowns in three games. It’s getting him some of the notoriety teammates say he’s deserved for years, not just as an underrated receiver, but for all the extra stuff the Rams system asks of Kupp and WR Robert Woods.

“They do half the stuff that we do, on back sides and front sides,” Rams RT Rob Havenstein said via the Athletic’s Jourdan Rodrigue. “It’s truly amazing to see, I just don’t think you see that in many other places, guys of their stardom, their caliber, going out and cutting off a defensive end. … It’s fun, because you can have a conversation with (Cooper), about, like, if I want to turn back and help because that’s what my assignment brings to me, I can talk to him about how I feel that playing out, and he can tell me, and we work off of that. Cooper is a selfless guy. He’s got a ton of talent and he’s a special player in this league, for sure.”

• Stafford praised C Brian Allen: “He’s been great. He thinks like me, which is great. He thinks like the quarterback, and he sees things the way I see them. He’s making protections as I’m thinking them and saying them.” (Rodrigue)

Seahawks

• Buccaneers CB Richard Sherman said the Seahawks didn’t aggressively try to sign him: “Seattle’s kind of you stringing you along, hasn’t offered you anything.” (Bob Condotta)
• Seahawks LB Bobby Wagner claims Sherman would’ve signed with Seattle if he didn’t have legal issues in July. (Condotta)
• Seahawks HC Pete Carroll said CBs Sidney Jones and Blessuan Austin are “closer” to being ready to play. (Michael-Shawn Duggar)
• Carroll added second-round WR D’Wayne Eskridge is close to practicing off of concussion protocol: “He can’t practice today but he gets cleared today to practice tomorrow. That’s part of the protocol, you have to get through Wednesday.” (Duggar)
• Seahawks DC Ken Norton didn’t directly say if a bad preseason led to DE L.J. Collier being inactive the past two weeks but it’s clear DT Robert Nkemdiche has passed him on the depth chart: “It’s hard to say. It came down to competition, being able to play, being able to make quick decisions, and right now we feel that Nkemdiche was a little ahead of him.” (Dugar)