Kyle Shanahan's surprising decision for 49ers in 2nd preseason game

There'll be more action for the San Francisco 49ers starters in their second preseason game Thursday night against the Los Angeles Chargers.

Despite holding a joint practice with the Chargers, head coach Kyle Shanahan said there'd be a change from the preseason opener where virtually no starters even suited up. Thursday at SoFi Stadium there'll be at least some of the team's projected starters in uniform and getting snaps.

"Not all of them," Shanahan said in his post-practice press conference, "but I expect a number of starters to play, unlike last week. I haven't told them yet, but they'll find out soon, but yeah, you guys will see a number out there.”

Shanahan specifically said "there's a good chance" quarterback Brock Purdy is among the team's starters that suit up. Defensive end Nick Bosa and running back Christian McCaffrey are likely not going to play as Shanahan eyes returns for them in the day or two after their game Thursday. Wide receiver Mike Evans is also dealing with some tightness that cropped up Tuesday and forced him out of practice early. They may not want to push Evans into action.

It's a little bit of a surprise that Shanahan would roll out his starters for part of the game after a joint practice since those joint sessions usually act as a better evaluation period than a preseason game does. However, given that the reviews from the team's practice with the Chargers weren't great, it makes sense that Shanahan would want to see his starters on the field again against LA.

“Yeah, I liked it a little more at first, didn't like it as much later" Shanahan told reporters after practice. "I thought we struggled a little bit in the move-the-ball periods, didn't score in two-minute, so there were some ups and downs, but I didn't really like how we finished the day.”

Quarterback Brock Purdy concurred with that assessment.

“Honestly, I don't think it was our best day," quarterback Brock Purdy told reporters after Tuesday's practice. "I feel like fundamentals and stuff were just a little off and whatnot. Obviously there was some good stuff, some stuff we need to work on, but I just feel like we could have come out with a little bit more chip on our shoulder, offensively. I don't know how our defense did, but yeah, that's just my overall thoughts.”

Chances are the starters' playing time will be limited to a series or two as they look to ramp up for their regular season opener on Sept. 10 vs. the Los Angeles Chargers.

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This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: Kyle Shanahan's surprising decision for 49ers in 2nd preseason game