With Javon Hargrave out for the season and Kevin Givens set to miss his second straight game with a groin injury, the Niners will be immediately relying on Davis to come in and make an impact for them. The problem for Shanahan, though, is that Davis’ name is incredibly similar to that of his new teammate Kalia Davis, with the head coach admitting he’s likely going to get them mixed up.
“We’ve had guys banged up this year, starting with [DL Javon] Hargrave losing for the year, not having [DL] Kevin [Givens] this week, [DL] Kalia [Davis] coming back late,” Shanahan said at his press conference on Friday. “It’s going to really be tough with Khalil Davis and Kalia Davis for me. But we need more depth just with the injuries and the more the merrier. We were pumped to be able to get him here and he’s fitting in very well this week.”
Kyle Shanahan hoping Khalil Davis can make immediate impact for 49ers
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This is a pretty interesting conundrum for Shanahan to face, but it’s likely very low on his list of concerns right now. Finding a way to get both Khalil and Kalia to produce when they take the field is more important for him, and with Givens out, both guys should be prepared to have a decent amount of snaps coming their way against Tampa Bay.
With Maliek Collins and Jordan Elliott holding down the starting defensive tackle positions, that will allow Shanahan to ease Khalil into the action as he adjusts to playing with his new team. The Niners will be looking to push their record to 5-4 on the year when they face off against the Bucs on Sunday afternoon in their Week 10 contest.
Owen Crisafulli is a Senior Editor and NFL Lead at ClutchPoints, who also covers the NBA and MLB. He recently received his Masters in Business Administration from Nichols College. Previously, he obtained his Bachelor’s degree in Sport Management, ran his own website, and had bylines at FanSided and the Basketball Network.
