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By Andrew McCarty
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The San Francisco 49ers are once again battling the injury bug as a pivotal contest against the Seattle Seahawks looms for the final week of the regular season.
The winner of Saturday night's game will not only win the NFC West, but also earn the No. 1 seed in the conference and a bye through the first week of the playoffs. The loser, meanwhile, will have to go on the road in the playoffs, earning either the No. 5 or No. 6 seed - the 49ers would have the No. 6 seed if the Rams win, while the Seahawks would earn the No. 5 seed over the No. 6-seeded Rams.
As the matchup looms, the 49ers could be short-handed.
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Star running back Christian McCaffrey was an early addition to the injury report this week, but head coach Kyle Shanahan suggested the move was precautionary in nature.
"I know he battled it hard that week, but I haven't heard anything about it since," Shanahan said of McCaffrey popping up on the injury report with a back issue. "It might have stiffened up in the game, and it was sore from Sunday night, so that's why we've got him on here today."
While the 49ers appear to have received good news on McCaffrey, the team could be without star tight end George Kittle, who missed a Week 17 win over the Chicago Bears, and future Hall of Fame left tackle Trent Williams, who suffered a hamstring injury in the win.
Of Kittle, Shanahan said, "I wouldn't assume that [he'll play this week]. We're barely moving today. We have a short week, so we won't be doing much all week."
The head coach said Williams has "a shot" to play on Saturday, but lamented the short week.
"Once you find out, you spend 10 seconds bitter about it then you say it is what it is," Shanahan said. "Everyone's got to deal with it sometimes, that's just how it is. So, you get frustrated but nothing you can do after that. Then you've got to make the adjustments to make sure you're right for that day. ... You just try to take care of your guys and get them as ready for that short week as much as you can."
San Francisco and Seattle kick off at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, Jan. 3 on ABC and ESPN.
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