49ers injury updates: Deebo Samuel and Dee Winters practice on Thursday

According to the beat reporters on hand, the San Francisco 49ers had a few notable names return to practice on Thursday.

Deebo Samuel, who missed the last two games with a calf strain, was in uniform and on the field. It goes without saying that the Niners have missed his presence. Samuel practicing does not guarantee that he’ll play in Week 4 against the New England Patriots, but it’s a step in the right direction, and it does mean that he’s closer to returning than being out longer than expected.

George Kittle practiced on Wednesday and was back in action on Thursday. He’s likely to have a limited designation once again, but the fact that Kittle has practiced in back to back days is promising. He feels like he’s more likely to play on Sunday than Deebo.

Left tackle Trent Williams missed Wednesday’s session due to illness. He was back on Thursday.

Those are the three stars, but linebacker Dee Winters might be equally as important. He was back on the practice field after injuring his ankle in the second quarter. Kyle Shanahan said the plan was to get the best players on the field defensively. Winters is one of those 11:

Speed creates chaos, and chaos leads to turnovers. Winters can be a bit reckless, not unlike Kwon Alexander, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Hopefully, Winters can get healthy. Because if he is, he’s been the 49ers’ second-best linebacker since August. That’s become more apparent by the game.

Defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen speaks today, so we won’t have updates about injuries until Friday afternoon. Once they’re available, we’ll provide the official injury designations later this afternoon.