NFC Notes: Cardinals, 49ers, Rams, Seahawks

49ers

With 49ers’ DC Robert Saleh almost certain to move on from the franchise in order to become a head coach elsewhere, Saleh gave his blessing for LB coach and former Pro Bowler DeMeco Ryans to be a possible in-house replacement.

“DeMeco is probably going to be a head coach one day,” Saleh said, via Eric Branch of The San Francisco Chronicle. “So I’ll be asking him for a job, I’m sure, not long from now. He’s got that type of football I.Q. That type of presence. And is as knowledgeable as it gets.”

• Branch also mentioned coaches from around the league, including Chargers’ DC Gus Bradley, former Falcons’ HC Dan Quinn, and Falcons’ interim HC Raheem Morris as potential replacements for Saleh upon his departure.
• Branch believes that the 49ers will keep QB Jimmy Garoppolo in 2021 and draft a quarterback in the first three rounds of the draft who could upgrade their backup spot. 
• 49ers HC Kyle Shanahan is unsure about the status of Garoppolo this week but mentioned that he doesn’t expect him to be available for the season finale. (Wagoner)
• 49ers’ WR Brandon Aiyuk suffered his high ankle sprain on the third play of the game and attempted to play through it, which resulted in pain and swelling that the receiver was not expecting. (Nick Wagoner)
• 49ers’ CB Richard Sherman will miss another game with a calf injury, meaning it is possible he has already played his last game with San Francisco. (Wagoner)
• The 49ers are bringing in P Drew Kaser, K Tristan Vizcaino and LS Drew Scott for tryouts this week. (Aaron Wilson)

Cardinals

• The Arizona Cardinals are bringing in WR Marcus Green for a tryout this week, according to Aaron Wilson.

Rams

With a berth in the playoffs potentially on the line, the Rams will turn to backup QB John Wolford this week against the Cardinals. Wolford is a former undrafted free agent out of Wake Forest who actually lost his job at one point to Kendall Hinton, who infamously had to play quarterback for the Broncos earlier this year. But the Rams are confident Wolford, who has since had a successful stint in the now-defunct AAF, is up to the challenge. 

“John Wolford will step up,” Rams HC Sean McVay said via NFL Media’s Nick Shook. “John’s done a great job preparing himself all year. If you watch the way that he’s worked at it, I know there’s confidence from coaches and from his teammates and guys will need to rally around him. But we’re excited about the opportunity that John will have to lead the offense this week.”

• Following his thumb surgery, Rams QB Jared Goff is still confident he can play in the playoffs despite the fact that this game may take place in just thirteen days. (Ian Rapoport)
• McVay confirmed that Goff underwent surgery on Monday, which included the insertion of screws. “We felt like that was going to be the best thing to do for him and for our team.” (Lindsey Thiry)
• McVay added that there was a chance that rookie RB Cam Akers could return this week from his high ankle sprain. (Jourdan Rodrigue)
• McVay says the team is also planning to activate veteran LT Andrew Whitworth from injured reserve if they make the playoffs. (Rodrigue)

Seahawks

• Seahawks’ HC Pete Carroll spoke about the status of LB Bobby Wagner‘s forearm that caused him to come out of the game on Sunday: “He won’t even let us look at it, so I think he’s OK.” (John Boyle)
• Carroll also talked about the strong performance from rookie LB Jordyn Brooks: “He played great. He really did. He was physical and tough and really saw things well. We had to change, adjust some things during the game to fit stuff up which he was able to do and did well.” (Curtis Crabtree)
• Carroll said that RT Brandon Shell would have been the last option for the team last week due to the fact that his ankle was still considered vulnerable by the training staff. Carroll went on to praise RT Cedric Ogbuehi, mentioning how well he has played at the position. (Crabtree)
• Carroll refused to go more in-depth about the injury of rookie DE Darrell Taylor, who could practice for the first time this week, and if his injury could be a long-term issue: “I’m trying to not go there. I’m trying to keep hold of a good thought like we’re going to be OK here if given enough time and all that. It will certainly help him to have another offseason.” (Crabtree)
• Carroll said CB Tre Flowers is designated to return from injured reserve, but as far as activating WR Josh Gordon there is currently no new information. (Brady Henderson)
• As for Taylor, Carroll would say that it doesn’t look good for him so far this week but he could still end up practicing after being evaluated: “He was pretty sore after his workouts over the weekend. So I can’t tell you, but that doesn’t bode well going forward as far as I can tell, but give us until Wednesday and we’ll see what’s going on.” (Henderson)