49ers' Kyle Shanahan had initial concerns about his health after car accident

Kyle Shanahan 49ers' Kyle Shanahan had initial concerns about his health after car accident San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan revealed that he was concerned about the impact of his health on his coaching after a car accident in July. By Dan Dempster • Published 1 hour ago • Updated 1 hour ago Training camp sets the tone for the NFL season, and it got off to a rocky start for the 49ers and coach Kyle Shanahan. After a car accident in mid-July knocked Shanahan out for the beginning of training camp, he originally thought that he could get back into the swing of things relatively soon. But in an i nterview with NBC Sports' "Chris Simms Unbuttoned," he recalled the doubt that settled in while dealing with concussion symptoms. Watch NBC Bay Area News free wherever you are WATCH HERE "I realized like five days later... I'm like, 'Man, I'm not really totally normal. I think it's more than just the pain. Like, I think I do have a concussion,'" Shanahan said, recalling the development of his symptoms. " And then, I ended up finding out I had a pretty bad one. And they kept telling me it would take like six to 12 weeks to feel normal. And that didn't register; I thought I was going to be fine the next week when I got back to camp." A day before 49ers training camp started on July 25, Shanahan said he still did not feel right and that he was "almost having panic attacks" because he was not ready to coach. "It hit me like, 'Dude, I don't know if I can do this,' " Shanahan explained. "And then I met with a doctor and everything, and it took all the pressure off me, because they're like, 'No, it's not that you can't do this, it's like we're not going to allow you to do it." And they basically started treating me like I know with players from concussion protocol." Shanahan eventually returned as training camp already was well underway, but he still dealt with symptoms weeks after the accident. Anxiety crept in as the season approached. "My headaches wouldn't go away," Shanahan said. "I'd feel normal for a little bit, but I would just tire out. I couldn't concentrate as long, and I mean that's going on up to three, four weeks, and I'm starting to panic because, I'm like, this doesn't feel right. San Francisco 49ers Keenan Allen 40 minutes ago New 49ers WR Keenan Allen recalls dizzying 24 hours after trade from Colts 49ers Analysis 3 hours ago CJ West, Deebo Samuel to return to 49ers practice; Mike Evans remains out "And the clock's ticking; Week 1 is coming and I don't know if I can handle all this." Shanahan revealed he was still experiencing concussion symptoms by the time the 49ers traveled to Australia for their Week 1 matchup against the Los Angeles Rams. The team had a contingency plan set to have offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak call plays for the season opener. But, just in the nick of time, Shanahan realized that he was good to go . "When I got to Australia, after getting over the sleep and everything, I was like three days into it I finally said to Klay [Kubiak], 'Dude, I haven't had any like headaches or anything for the last couple days and I actually think I'm going to be good here on Sunday...'" Shanahan said. "... But I didn't want it to be like in the preseason, because in the preseason, by halftime I just felt like crap... And then I felt totally fine through that game, and I have felt fine since and now I've actually forgotten about a lot of it... "... it was scary for a while, but got back to normal." The 49ers came out of Week 1 with a dominant 27-7 win and set the tone for a successful start to the season. Oddly enough, the accident might have provided some benefits for Shanahan and his coaching staff. With the head coach being forced to take a step back, he was able to lean on the trust he's built with his staff. "My staff's awesome and we've been here for so long together that it's kind of just like a machine that we know what each other wants," Shanahan explained. "We know when we're doing it, we know what day we're going to do it." Being limited forced Shanahan to relax, which goes against his instincts heading into training camp. "There's certain things that I do a lot of, every year at the same time, going on like 22 years to where like, 'Wait, if I don't do that, I'm not going to be able to coach; we're going to fall apart.' " Shanahan said. "'And it's like no dude, chill out. Quit being a psycho. You actually don't have to do that." He credited his supporting cast, particularly Kubiak and defensive coordinator Raheem Morris, in getting operations rolling without him. "I'd come out to practice, and I missed a couple things, but first, who would take over for that?" Shanahan said. "Raheem would take over for that. Klay would take over for it, and I'd come out to practice and watch everything. I'd be like, 'Man, this is running pretty smoothly. All right, I can relax a little bit. Like, guys got under control and I can get myself right and quit overrating a lot of these things. You've been doing it for a while, and we don't need that every single day.' " Nearly four months later, the accident is mostly out of memory. Shanahan and the 49ers are off to a 7-1 start, their best since 2019. Download and follow the 49ers Talk Podcast This article tagged under: Kyle Shanahan