SANTA CLARA — It’s still wait-and-see on Jauan Jennings, but 49ers general manager John Lynch conceded for the first time his absence isn’t necessarily just because of his calf injury.
“Two things can be true,” Lynch told reporters Wednesday during a press conference alongside coach Kyle Shanahan. “He wants a new contract and he’s got a calf. I think people want to assume one or the other.”
Lynch also said for the first time Jennings had requested a trade, although he didn’t specify when.
“A while ago he did, and we’ve moved on from that,” Lynch said.
In the meantime, the 49ers signed veteran Marques Valdes-Scantling and also retained Russell Gage Jr. on the 53-man roster, to go along with Ricky Pearsall Jr., Skyy Moore and Jordan Watkins on the 53-man roster plus Robbie Chosen, Malik Turner and seventh-round draft pick Junior Bergen on the practice squad.
Gage’s signing will not be official until Thursday as the 49ers need to make a corresponding move.
Other news from the approximately 20-minute press conference before the 49ers took the field for practice:
— Left guard Ben Bartch (elbow) and right guard Dominick Puni (knee) look to be on track to be in the lineup Week 1 against Seattle on Sept. 7.
“We’re optimistic about it,” Shanahan said. “We’re trending in the right direction but we won’t know until next week. We got Bartch out last week and we hope to get Puni out for Monday’s practice and we’re on course for that. ”
— Lynch defended place kicker Jake Moody, who missed an extra point and flubbed a kickoff in a 30-23 win over the Los Angeles Chargers in the preseason finale.
“Jake had a really good preseason,” Lynch said. “I found it interesting after a hell of a game in Las Vegas, a lot of people had questions. I guess when you have a season like he did last year, those things are going to be there until you kind of put that away.”
— Slot corner Upton Stout is expected to be back on the field Wednesday after missing time with a calf injury.
— Lynch recognized that while the 49ers lost a lot of players in free agency, he likes what he sees with the younger version of the 49ers.
“Sometimes there’s roster mechanics that go on,” Lynch said. “Like Kyle said, it’s never a final 53 and I’m sure it will be fluid, but we like our final group of guys. It never stays static.”
— Shanahan said he’s comfortable with the roster after the unease of free agency departures such as Javon Hargrave, Leonard Floyd, Maliek Collins and others. Of the 49ers’ 11 draft picks, 10 are on the 53-man roster with Bergen on the practice squad.
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“We lost a lot of our team that day and we didn’t sign a bunch of guys,” Shanahan said. “The draft makes you feel better because you fill up some of those holes, but you’re not going to feel good until you actually see those guys make your team and play.”
More to come on this developing story . . .
