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Kyle Shanahan says he had to intervene because he was afraid for Jimmy Garoppolo's ACL

Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan wanted to see starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo take a few reps in 11-on-11 drills, but he counted on his defensive players to go easy on the quarterback, just 10 months removed from a torn ACL.

It turns out going easy isn't exactly what defensive players do.

Shanahan recently told ESPN he told the defensive linemen to "stand still, put your hands up and do not touch Garoppolo" during the quarterback's first 11-on-11 action since the injury.

"The animals that they are, why we love them, they couldn't help it," Shanahan said.