Tag: 49ers practice squad

49ers add 2 players to practice squad ahead of Week 1 practice

The #49ers have expanded their practice squad by two.

The 49ers on Monday expanded their practice squad by two players in time for their first practice in the lead up to Week 1 of the regular season. San Francisco announced the additions of linebacker Buddy Johnson and offensive lineman Leroy Watson.

Watson’s father broke the news on Twitter that the undrafted rookie from UTSA was joining the club. He originally signed the Atlanta Falcons, but was let go at final cuts. Watson is a converted tight end who played alongside 49ers fourth-round pick Spencer Burford at UTSA.

Johnson was a fourth-round pick of the Steelers last season. He played in just four games for Pittsburgh and primarily contributed on special teams. Johnson was drafted out of Texas A&M where he started 23 of the 47 games he appeared in. He posted 210 tackles, 6.5 sacks, four pass breakups and one interception.

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49ers add CB and OL to practice squad ahead of Week 15

The #49ers added a CB and OL to their practice squad ahead of their Week 15 matchup with the Falcons.

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The San Francisco 49ers on Wednesday announced two new additions to their practice squad with cornerback Lavert Hill and offensive lineman Wyatt Miller.

Hill gives the team more in-house depth at corner after Saivion Smith was scooped off waivers by the Detroit Lions. The Chiefs gave Hill his first NFL job in 2020 as an undrafted rookie. He spent the first part of the 2020 season on Kansas City’s practice squad before his release. Philadelphia signed him to their practice squad for the rest of the season and let him go during training camp this year. Hill joined the Cardinals’ practice squad in late October and was released after less than a week.

Miller is also a career practice squad player since signing as an undrafted rookie with the Jets in 2019. He bounced from New York to Cincinnati, and then signed to Dallas’ active roster from the Bengals’ practice squad, but he was inactive in his only game with the Cowboys. From Dallas he went to Seattle and Kansas City before landing with San Francisco.

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49ers practice squad: WR Devin Funchess released, new WR and LB brought in

The #49ers swapped out WRs and LBs on their practice squad.

The 49ers shuffled their practice squad once again following their Week 13 loss to the Seahawks.

Wide receiver Devin Funchess and linebacker Justin March were both let go to make room for wide receiver Austin Mack and linebacker Curtis Robinson.

Mack signed as an undrafted free agent in 2020 with the New York Giants. He played in 11 games that year and caught seven passes for 91 yards. The Giants let Mack go at final roster cuts this year, and he spent about a week on the Titans’ practice squad before getting released.

He’ll replace Funchess who went on practice squad injured reserve shortly after signing with the 49ers in late November.

Robinson is an undrafted rookie out of Stanford who saw action in three games for the Broncos around stints on their practice squad. He was let go in late November.

With injuries still rippling through the 49ers’ LB corps it makes sense they’d add more internal depth if they were unhappy with how March played in Seattle. He played 15 special teams snaps after joining the 49ers’ practice squad early in Week 13 preparations.

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Another practice squad swap for 49ers after injury to newly-signed player

The #49ers practice squad had an injury issue that forced them to effectively reverse a roster move they made Wednesday.

The 49ers one day after adding safety Doug Middleton to their practice squad and releasing safety Kai Nacua have announced another roster move involving those two players.

Middleton was placed on the practice squad injured reserve with an undisclosed injury. That opened a practice squad spot, so a day after releasing Nacua to make room for Middleton, the 49ers re-signed Nacua.

Nacua spent part of 2020 with the 49ers and played in five games, mostly as a special teams contributor. He played in one game this year and saw 15 snaps on special teams.

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More practice squad movement as injuries hit 49ers active roster

The #49ers made some moves on their practice squad with injuries hitting the active roster.

The 49ers on Wednesday announced a handful of moves on their practice squad in the wake of some bad injury news coming out of their Week 12 game vs. Minnesota.

San Francisco added linebacker Justin March and safety Doug Middleton to their practice squad, and in a corresponding move placed wide receiver Devin Funchess on practice squad injured reserve and released safety Kai Nacua.

March has been in the NFL since joining the Chiefs in 2015 as an undrafted free agent. After two seasons in Kansas City he bounced to the Dolphins, Cowboys, Seahawks and most recently the Titans. March has played in 59 games with five starts and racked up 45 tackles, a tackle for loss and three pass breakups. The Titans let March go in early September.

Middleton joined the NFL as an undrafted free agents with the Jets in 2016. He was with New York for three years, then Miami and Jacksonville. In his three stops he played in 24 games with four starts and posted 44 tackles with four pass breakups.

With Funchess heading to IR and three linebackers potentially out Sunday for the 49ers it’s not a surprise San Francisco used the open practice squad spot on a linebacker. March may wind up needing to play Sunday if Fred Warner, Dre Greenlaw and Marcell Harris are all out with injuries. None of the trio practiced Wednesday. Tyrell Adams is the other linebacker on the practice squad who could also be up Sunday.

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49ers protect 3 practice squad players during bye week

The #49ers ensured three players from their practice squad won’t be signed away during the bye week.

The 49ers on Wednesday protected three players from getting poached off their practice squad. San Francisco ensured quarterback Nate Sudfeld, tight end Tanner Hudson and offensive lineman Colton McKivitz won’t be signed by another club while the team has its week off.

It wouldn’t be a surprise to see any of this trio become fixtures on the active roster while the injury bug continues to plague San Francisco.

Sudfeld provides insurance under center with Jimmy Garoppolo dealing with a calf injury and Trey Lance working through a knee sprain. Garoppolo is expected to return after the bye, but Lance’s status is less certain for Week 7, so Sudfeld could be active for a second consecutive game when the 49ers host the Colts.

Hudson was recently added after George Kittle was placed on injured reserve with a calf injury. He played in one offensive snap and seven special teams snaps in Week 5 against the Cardinals. More time with the team could mean more time on the field as he fills the No. 3 tight end role with Kittle out for at least two more games.

The McKivitz protection is interesting and could signal some kind of shuffle on the offensive line. He’s capable of playing guard and tackle, but didn’t work his way onto the active roster this preseason. Right guard Daniel Brunskill has had an up-and-down year, and the club may be looking at opening an in-season competition at right guard with McKivitz in the mix.

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49ers roster moves: Jordan Matthews returns, 2 RBs released from practice squad

The #49ers made a number of moves on their practice squad, including the release of a pair of veteran RBs.

The 49ers on Tuesday made a series of moves on their practice squad to reflect some of the changing injury statuses on their active roster.

Running back Elijah Mitchell is expected to return for Week 5 and should be a full go at practice, giving the 49ers a healthier running back room than they had when they made a slew of RB additions to their practice squad.

They also added another tight end to the practice squad as George Kittle battles through a calf injury.

Here’s a quick rundown of the moves, which were first sent out by NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco:

 

49ers add extra RB to practice squad with Raheem Mostert out

The former Stanford running back retired in 2018 before re-joining the NFL with the San Francisco 49ers’ practice squad.

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The San Francisco 49ers are once again in a spot where they may have to shuffle their backfield. Raheem Mostert is out for the year with an ankle injury and Austin Walter is on the COVID-19 list, so San Francisco added running back Tyler Gaffney to their practice squad as an additional option in their injury-ravaged backfield.

Gaffney was a sixth-round pick of the Panthers out of Stanford in the 2014 draft. He’s also spent time with the Patriots and Jaguars. Gaffney hasn’t made his NFL debut yet, and retired in 2018 before making his way back into the league with the 49ers.

Jeff Wilson Jr. figures to lead the 49ers’ backfield in Week 16 vs. the Cardinals, but he’s dealing with the after effects of a high ankle sprain. Tevin Coleman and Jerick McKinnon are also on the active roster, so Gaffney will give them some insurance should they encounter more injury issues.

49ers make several changes to practice squad, reach injury settlement with Tavon Austin

The 49ers made several practice squad moves, and released wide receiver Tavon Austin.

The 49ers on Tuesday announced a slew of changes to their practice squad. They signed offensive lineman Tony Bergstrom and defensive lineman Willie Henry Jr. to the 16-man squad. In a corresponding move, cornerback Brian Allen, offensive lineman Cody Conway and defensive lineman Adam Shuler were all let go. Wide receiver Tavon Austin was also released with an injury settlement.

Bergstrom, 34, was a third-round pick of the Raiders in 2012. He spent three years with Oakland before bouncing to Houston, Baltimore and Washington. Through his eight seasons he’s started 21 of the 82 games he’s played in. He’ll give them additional experience and depth on the interior if they need to dip into their practice squad.

Henry spent time in the offseason with San Francisco, but was released in late July. The 2016 Ravens fourth-round pick has three starts in 17 career games. In those 17 games Henry has 36 tackles, 4.5 sacks and five pass breakups. He’s another player the 49ers may lean on if they need depth from on internal source.

Allen is the most notable name of the players let go. He was pushed into a start against the Dolphins in Week 5 because of injuries in the secondary. The outing did not go well and he was removed from the game and reverted back on the practice squad the following day.

San Francisco reached an injury settlement with Austin who hurt his knee during training camp and was placed on Injured Reserve. Going on IR before the season prevented him from playing for the 49ers this year. An injury settlement means he’s a free agent and can sign with any club. Austin signed with the 49ers in mid-August and went on IR just over two weeks later.

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49ers practice squad TE suspended 6 games

The NFL suspended 49ers practice squad TE Chase Harrell for violating the NFL’s performance-enhancing substance policy.

The NFL suspended 49ers undrafted rookie tight end Chase Harrell for violating the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy per Matt Barrows of the Athletic.

Harrell’s suspension will open up a spot on the 49ers’ 16-man practice squad, although no addition has been announced. This shouldn’t have any sort of impact on San Francisco, which just signed TE Daniel Helm off the Buccaneers practice squad to join their 53-man roster, indicating there weren’t any plans to elevate Harrell in his first season.

San Francisco signed Harrell as an undrafted free agent out of Arkansas following this year’s draft. The 6-4, 249-pound tight end spent three seasons at the University of Kansas before transferring to Arkansas for his final two years. He caught 37 passes for 396 yards and six touchdowns in 17 games across four years between the two schools.