Left tackle Donald Penn’s bid for a new deal led him to hold himself out of the team’s practices this summer until he reported to work with the team last Wednesday.
As General Manager Reggie McKenzie promised when Penn’s holdout began, the tackle didn’t get a revised contract before returning to the team. His decision to report didn’t come about because he no longer wants a new deal, however. Penn said after making his preseason debut on Saturday that he hopes to talk about his contract after McKenzie said he wouldn’t discuss it unless Penn was with the team.
“That’s the plan,” Penn said, via NBC Sports Bay Area. “We have a great owner, a good GM. I came in here putting my trust in them. That’s what they told me. I’m going to sit here and wait and control what I can control. That’s trying to get better from what I put out there today.”
Penn said he has some rust to knock off, but felt good about his conditioning in his first game action of the preseason. He should be fully ready to go by Week One, although it remains to be seen if he’ll have a new contract when he takes the field against the Titans.