ARLINGTON, Texas -- The San Francisco 49ers finished Sunday's frenetic win against the Dallas Cowboys without two of their best defenders.
Now, as they turn their attention to the Green Bay Packers and the NFC divisional round, the biggest questions looming over the team center on the availability of defensive end Nick Bosa and linebacker Fred Warner.
Bosa (concussion) and Warner (right ankle) should have a chance to play against the Packers on Saturday, but it's too early to say for certain, according to coach Kyle Shanahan.
For Bosa to play, he will have to clear the concussion protocol, similar to how punter Mitch Wishnowsky did to play in Dallas. Wishnowsky had a concussion on Jan. 9 against the Los Angeles Rams, cleared protocol on Saturday and played Sunday.
Warner's situation is a bit more complicated, as he will have further testing done on the ankle on Monday. Shanahan offered some optimism that Warner, too, could be ready for Green Bay.
"I think it's similar to what he did earlier in the year when he had one," Shanahan said. "We're not sure yet. He's got a chance [to play]."
Warner suffered his previous ankle injury in a Nov. 28 win against the Minnesota Vikings, did not play the following week against Seattle and returned on Dec. 12 against the Cincinnati Bengals.
This time, Warner suffered the injury with 8:40 left in Sunday's 23-17 win against the Cowboys. He did not return to the game, departing with five tackles, tied for second most on the team.
Bosa suffered his concussion with 1:19 left in the first half as he and defensive tackle D.J. Jones converged on Cowboys running back Tony Pollard. Bosa was down and Jones appeared to accidentally hit Bosa in the head with his knee.
After staying down for a bit, Bosa pointed to his head and slowly got to his feet before walking slowly off the field. The Niners evaluated Bosa at halftime for a concussion and it was confirmed that he would not be able to return.
Before his departure, Bosa had three tackles, a half-sack and a quarterback hit. Bosa led the 49ers in sacks in 2021 with 15.5 in the regular season.
Even without Bosa and Warner, the 49ers' defense found a way to hold the high-powered Cowboys to 17 points and 307 yards. The 49ers had five sacks, with six players contributing at least a half-sack each.
"Guys just knew that they had to step up," defensive tackle Arik Armstead said. "We've had a lot of injuries and different things throughout the year, a lot of adversity and guys have had to step up and this was just another situation."