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The article 49ers injury report: Arik Armstead will play against the Eagles originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — After missing many practices due to a foot ailment, 49ers defensive tackle Arik Armstead said that he will play against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday in Philadelphia.

“I’ll be out there on Sunday,” Armstead stated ahead to the team’s practice on Thursday.

Armstead has yet to miss a game in 2023 and has played 476 defensive snaps (67 percent). The versatile defensive lineman has 26 stops, 15 of which were solo, four for a loss, 13 quarterback hits, and five sacks.

With Armstead set to go, the 49ers’ defensive line is fully prepared for a vital Week 13 game that will determine who finishes first in the NFC and receives a first-round bye at the end of the season.

Since their Week 9 bye, defensive coordinator Steve Wilks has been impressed with the performance of his defensive front. The long-time defensive coach believes the team will need to be at their best when facing one of the league’s greatest offensive lines.

The Eagles have a few more injuries than the 49ers, but they will still put up a fight. Lane Johnson, the club’s long-time tackle, is expected to return from a groin injury that kept him out of the club’s overtime triumph over.

The article 49ers’ D-line hitting stride ahead of pivotal Eagles showdown originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area.The 49ers’ defensive line has been on a tear since Chase Young was acquired in a trade on Halloween, but he isn’t the only reason.

Javon Hargrave, who had 11 sacks for the Philadelphia Eagles last season, struggled to get off to a good start in the Bay after signing a four-year, $84 million contract in free agency. He’s finally found his groove, developing chemistry with Arik Armstead and the rest of the D-line.

“We just know how to communicate,” Hargrave said of his newfound collaboration with Armstead on Wednesday. “We tell each other everything, what we’re seeing, and we really communicate off the field, like this week, just like that.”

Our D-line has significantly increased our production. That’s what I mean when I say “the entire group has been doing really well together.”Hargrave had three sacks in his first eight games, then three more in the 49ers’ next three. This season, he has 32 tackles (17 solo and seven for a loss) and 12 quarterback hits.

Armstead’s output has also grown, with 4.5 sacks in four games following only a half-sack in the first seven games. That demonstrates how well the 49ers’ defensive tackles have worked together, since they have more opportunities now that Young and reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year Nick Bosa have sealed the edges.

“Well, I see that they’ve gotten their legs back, and they’re fresh,” 49ers defensive coordinator Steve Wilks said on Thursday. “They have completely controlled the line of scrimmage in the last couple of weeks, in my opinion.” This week will be difficult, but it is the only thing we discussed. We have to do a good job inside with our tackles.”

“I think Hargrave has been really consistent all year,” Shanahan said. I believe he battled the most in the Cincinnati game [a 31-17 49ers loss two days before the Young deal]. He appeared to need rest more than anyone else at the moment, in my opinion. I believe he understood, and

Hargrave played 44 defensive snaps (70 percent) in that Week 8 defeat to the Bengals and did not register a single stat. He has, however, been extremely productive since then.”It’s never just one guy,” remarked Shanahan. “It’s been one guy here and there, all different guys, but I feel like they’re all at the top of their game right now.” You have ebbs and flows during the year, and I feel like they’ve been on top of their game the last few weeks.

“You either get better or worse. So, maybe, we can keep it up.”

Hargrave and Armstead’s interior performance has also boosted Bosa’s stat line, as he now has 2.5 sacks.

“Just having the confidence that he’s going to do his job is enough,” Bosa said of Hargrave’s addition on Wednesday. “If he’s hitting it in the B-gap, if you know he’s going to get that penetration, it makes me confident that what I’m doing, I have that covered up.”It looks that the 49ers’ defensive line simply needed some time to gel, which could benefit them in Sunday’s game against Hargrave’s previous team, the 10-1 Eagles.

“I’m glad he’s on our side this time and not theirs,” 49ers linebacker Fred Warner said on Wednesday. “It’s just been so consistent for us in terms of just getting disruption in the middle of our defensive line.” He’s been such an important part of what we’ve done all season, being available every week, keeping healthy, and being as disruptive as he is. Physical, out of the stack, he fit right in to what we do as soon as he arrived, so I’m not shocked at all that he’s produced and been the player that we require.”

If Hargrave is the player the 49ers need him to be this week, they will almost certainly win.

Kids used to watch TV at ground level until 75-inch OLEDs were installed over mantels. We’d eventually succumb to the urge to crush our noses against the screen, shattering the image into pixelated darkness.

Such behavior would elicit a reprimand from our parents (“Back up or you’ll go blind”), who couldn’t even fathom the future horrors of macular degeneration we’d one day pluck from our wallets and lustily ogle like eye cocaine.

In any case, when your face is smashed against a 27-inch Zenith, all perspective is lost. Everything appears to be fuzz. That gets us to the question of Bill Belichick’s future.

We in New England have watched it all implode with interest, revulsion, and shock. The Patriots are 2-9, and Belichick’s fingerprints are all over those statistics, from his shambolic roster creation to his Jigsaw-like destruction of quarterback Mac Jones to his team’s lack of discipline. The Patriots are bad on every level.

As a result, we doubt anyone else would put him in charge of their organization. With his archaic love of special teams, refusal to prioritize receivers who can run and/or catch, and squandered draft picks on kickers, punters, and guards, they must see that the game has passed him by.

In fact, there will be so many teams looking for coaches this winter that, rather than letting Belichick slink away for free, the Patriots should be in a position of power, with the coach still under contract, to demand a genuine return.

Not quite a year ago, the Broncos gave up first- and second-round picks to the Saints in exchange for Sean Payton (and a third-round pick), who had spent a year in the broadcast booth after leading New Orleans to 158 wins and one Super Bowl triumph in 15 seasons. He reaches 60 this month and has nowhere approaching Belichick’s resume, yet the Broncos still thought he was worth the money.

Just wait and see who makes the same decision about Belichick. Never underestimate NFL owners’ insular fantasies, as possibly best demonstrated by Indianapolis’ Jim Irsay, who recently told HBO that his 2014 DUI conviction was prompted by prejudice against “a rich white billionaire.” Needless to say, this is not a group of self-aware men.

They’re largely elderly people who live in an exclusive villa — Population: each other. Don’t assume they’re seeing what we’re seeing. They notice Robert Kraft with his special Nike Air Force 1 Ultra Forces kicked up on the table’s head and Meek Mill by his side, and they want a seat as well. Hiring the architect of Kraft’s success accelerates that process.

You may think hiring Belichick in a league dominated by hot-shot young offensive brains like Miami’s Mike McDaniel is a bad idea, but does 66-year-old Panthers owner David Tepper agree? He didn’t fire his third coach in four years because he’s a genius. If he’s willing to utilize the first overall pick on Bryce Young, he has a good chance.

You may think hiring Belichick in a league dominated by hot-shot young offensive brains like Miami’s Mike McDaniel is a bad idea, but does 66-year-old Panthers owner David Tepper agree? He didn’t fire his third coach in four years because he’s a genius. He could be persuaded to trade a future first-round choice for Belichick if he’s ready to spend the No. 1 overall pick on Bryce Young.Similarly, Dean Spanos of the Chargers is 73 years old and has seen bright young quarterback Justin Herbert decline under the reportedly brilliant and precocious Brandon Staley. Spanos would be justified in saying, “Eff these young guys, I’m going with the track record.”

Or how about George Halas McCaskey, the Bears’ fourth-generation owner? He’s not in charge of the team because his intellect demanded it – it’s almost written on his birth certificate. He’s 67 years old and has only had two winning seasons since taking over in 2011. You mean a team desperate to live up to the iconic Halas name wouldn’t go all-in on Belichick?

There’s no reason the Patriots shouldn’t get at least a first-round selection in exchange for letting him go. “Aren’t they just going to fire him anyway?” that’s what you’re saying. Perhaps, but all it takes is one desperate owner to decide that the risk of Belichick becoming a free agency isn’t worth it to put the Krafts in charge.