In the current world we live in, the loudest and most consistent voice gets heard best. In fact, Seattle Seahawks fans and fans of every other team get used to those voices so much that they become seemingly reliable. They are fallible, though, as we all are.
To be more specific, NFL insider Adam Schefter is a valued reporter on all things NFL news, but Schefter is also not without trying to stir the proverbial pot a bit. That should diminish complete belief in what he reports and how he reports it.
Most recently, Schefter implied that maybe Fred Warner, the great San Francisco 49ers linebacker, might actually play against the Seahawks because, well...the player kept saying he wanted to. That kind of reporting implies Schefter would rather spin the tale of drama than dig into the truth. What Warner wanted and what his team realistically thought were different things.
49ers' Fred Warner will not play versus the Seattle Seahawks no matter what Adam Schefter thought
Fred Warner has been ruled out for the game against Seattle, and that makes sense. Maybe he comes back and plays in the NFC Championship game if San Fran somehow gets by Seattle. Or, knowing that Warner is going to be an integral part of the 49ers' defense for years to come, the team could keep him out for the risk of bringing him back too fast.
The 49ers learned what the Indianapolis Colts didn't. Warner broke and dislocated his ankle in Week 6 and hasn't returned, even though he seems well ahead of schedule for his return. With Indy, quarterback Daniel Jones tried to play with a broken fibula, but then tore the Achilles tendon in his other leg, maybe because he was trying to make up for the other leg's injury.
To be sure, Warner is a great player. He immediately makes the San Francisco 49ers defense better whenever he returns, and San Francisco has succeeded to this point in the season despite all the injuries they have had. But the linebacker will not play against the Seattle Seahawks, and he shouldn't.
He was always unlikely to play, while he was limited in practice ahead of the Seattle game. Adam Schefter misled many by implying there was a chance, and that is simply bad journalism.