Nakobe Dean’s expected return from injury could be critical against 49ers ground attack

The Eagles are likely to get back one of their key defensive players just in time for the playoffs.

Linebacker Nakobe Dean is expected to return to action on Sunday for the Eagles’ wild-card game against the San Francisco 49ers, Vic Fangio said on Tuesday. Dean, 25, has been inactive for the last two weeks while recovering from a hamstring injury sustained in the Week 16 win over the Washington Commanders.

He is set to enter the lineup at a critical time, with the stakes higher entering the postseason and the competition ramping up against a strong 49ers offense.

The group’s top weapons put the greatest stress on opposing inside linebackers. Christian McCaffrey, the two-time first-team All-Pro running back, is the most productive player in Kyle Shanahan’s offense. McCaffrey is second in the NFL with 2,126 scrimmage yards on a career-high 413 touches (1,202 rushing yards on 311 carries and 924 receiving yards on 102 catches).

“He’s a very good runner when they hand it off to him,” Fangio said. “And obviously, he is a very good receiver ... he’s got over 100 receptions this year. And he’s always a threat that way. They do like to scheme plays for him in the passing game.”

George Kittle, the two-time first-team All-Pro tight end, missed six games this season due to hamstring and ankle injuries. Still, he’s the third-most targeted player in the 49ers offense behind McCaffrey and wide receiver Jauan Jennings, posting 628 yards and seven touchdowns on 57 receptions.

Dean will be tasked with helping keep Kittle and McCaffrey in check. He ought to be up for the challenge, especially on the ground. Since coming off the physically unable to perform list and returning to Fangio’s defense in Week 7, Dean has mustered stops on 6.5% of his run defense snaps, the third-highest rate on the team among players with at least 100 such snaps, according to Pro Football Focus.

“It’s a big game for everybody,” Fangio said. “You play an offense this good and this diverse, all 11 got to be cooking.”

In an alternate universe, Fangio is preparing to face the Eagles as Shanahan’s defensive coordinator.

That hire could have happened in 2017, when Shanahan left the Atlanta Falcons to become the head coach in San Francisco. At the time, Fangio was the Chicago Bears’ defensive coordinator. However, the Bears reportedly blocked the 49ers’ attempt to speak with Fangio, so he stayed in Chicago for two more seasons before he left for the Denver Broncos’ head coaching gig.

Even though they never served on the same staff, Fangio said he maintains a relationship with Shanahan.

“We don’t talk often, put it that way,” Fangio said. “But if there’s a reason to, we do talk or text with each other.”

He hasn’t faced Shanahan often either, at least recently. The two coaches have gone head-to-head four times as coordinators or head coaches throughout their careers, twice while Fangio was the 49ers’ defensive coordinator under Jim Harbaugh and Shanahan was the offensive coordinator for Washington in 2011 and 2013. The other two occasions occurred when Fangio was with the Bears and Shanahan was with the 49ers in 2017 and 2018.

Fangio has a 3-1 all-time lead, with his lone loss coming by one point in the 2017 matchup. In those four meetings, Shanahan’s offenses have never scored a meaningful touchdown against Fangio’s defenses.

In 2011, Washington receiver Jabar Gaffney snagged a garbage-time touchdown pass in the 19-11 loss to the 49ers. Kickers on Shanahan’s teams have combined for 11 field goals in those games.

Fangio downplayed his success in their head-to-head matchups, emphasizing that it’s been “almost 10 years” since they last faced each other. He said he holds Shanahan — who has led the 49ers to three NFC West division titles, four NFC championship games, and two Super Bowl showings — in high regard as an offensive play-caller.

“Everything’s packaged well together,” Fangio said. “And he’s a good play-caller during the game. You always know that. Everything they do has a purpose and a reason.”

The Eagles offensive line could be poised to welcome back Lane Johnson, who has missed the last seven games with a Lisfranc foot injury.

Johnson, the 35-year-old right tackle, is expected to practice on Wednesday for the first time since getting hurt against the Detroit Lions in mid-November, league sources told The Inquirer. In the absence of the two-time first-team All-Pro right tackle, the Eagles have gone 3-4, bringing them to 18-28 in the games Johnson has missed throughout his 13-year career.

Kevin Patullo stressed the impact Johnson would have on the offense if he is available to play against the 49ers.

“Lane’s the best right tackle in the game,” the Eagles offensive coordinator said. “So if we get him back, it’s tremendous. He’ll add so much to everything. Even his leadership, his play-style ability, run-pass, doesn’t matter. It’ll be a tremendous lift for the whole entire offense and I think you’ll feel the energy if he’s out there.”