49ers' Fred Warner Says He's Played Through Fractured Ankle Injury Since NFL Week 4

San Francisco 49ers linebacker Fred Warner says he has been playing through a fractured bone in his ankle since Week 4.

Warner suffered the injury while playing against the visiting New England Patriots on Sept. 29, per ESPN's Nick Wagoner.

Since then Warner has made seven straight starts while recording 33 combined tackles and two tackles for loss.

Warner left the Week 4 win in the second quarter and did not return to the game. 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said after the victory that Warner had tried to re-enter the game in the third quarter "but didn't feel like he could."

He missed multiple practices heading into a Week 5 matchup with the Arizona Cardinals but returned in time for the game.

Warner told reporters on Wednesday that he has been receiving painkilling injections prior to games in order to continue playing.

"It's something I deal with before every game," Warner said, per David Lombardi of the San Francisco Standard. "I get on that table before every game and get shot up every single game just to be able to roll. It's not an excuse. That's the NFL. You're not gonna be healthy... It was a fracture when I sprained it. Anytime you fracture a bone, if you continue to play on it, the bone's not going to be able to heal itself. So you've just got to be able to fight through."

Warner's performance has suffered since the injury. He hasn't recorded a Pro Football Focus grade of more than 72.8 since Week 4, and received his worst mark since 2021 with a 44.7 grade against the Green Bay Packers in Week 12 (h/t USA Today's Kyle Madson.)

The 49ers hold a 5-6 record and have a 16 percent probability of making the playoffs heading into Week 13, per NFL Next Gen Stats. Should San Francisco be eliminated from the postseason, Warner could potentially decide to end the streak of 109 straight starts he has made for the 49ers since entering the NFL in 2018.