Tag: mitch wishnowsky

49ers roster moves good news for defensive line ahead of Week 11

49ers roster moves ahead of Week 11:

The San Francisco 49ers are getting a key piece of their defensive line back ahead of their Week 11 showdown with the Seattle Seahawks.

Defensive lineman Yetur Gross-Matos has been activated off IR according to an announcement from the team. Punter Mitch Wishnowsky and cornerback Darrell Luter Jr. were both placed on IR, and punter Pat O’Donnell was promoted from the practice squad.

Wishnowsky is dealing with a back injury that initially cropped up in training camp and forced him to miss the preseason. He’ll now be out at least four weeks before he’s eligible to return. The team signed O’Donnell to the practice squad early in the week, signaling bad news for Wishnowsky’s status.

The Gross-Matos return could be significant for a 49ers defensive end rotation that has struggled to produce this season. Gross-Matos tried playing through a knee injury he suffered in training camp, but eventually it landed him on IR. That knee issue may have slowed him down some because in three games he posted only one tackle, one quarterback hit and five pressures according to Pro Football Focus.

Ideally Gross-Matos will fit as a defensive end who can also rush the passer from the interior. His return may help make up for the lack of acquisitions on the defensive line at the trade deadline. Sunday will mark his first action since the 49ers’ Week 4 win over the New England Patriots.

San Francisco also brought up cornerback Nick McCloud from the practice squad on a standard elevation. McCloud is a standout special teams player who will replace Luter who is now out for at least four weeks after suffering a pelvis injury in the lead up to Week 11.

Veteran safety Tashaun Gipson was also elevated from the practice squad to provide depth at a position where the 49ers have Ji’Ayir Brown, Malik Mustapha and George Odum on the roster.

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49ers roster move isn’t good news for ailing specialist

The 49ers added a new punter to their practice squad while Mitch Wishnowsky deals with an injury.

The San Francisco 49ers might once again be dealing with a missing specialist.

Punter Mitch Wishnowsky has been dealing with a back injury that flared up during the team’s Week 10 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Head coach Kyle Shanahan on Monday said the team would be evaluating treatment options, and left Wishnowsky’s status for Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks up in the air.

San Francisco’s practice squad tweak before Wednesday’s game wasn’t a good sign for Wishnowsky’s availability.

The 49ers on Tuesday announced the addition of punter Pat O’Donnell to their practice squad. They released veteran defensive tackle T.Y. McGill in a corresponding move to make room on their 16-man practice squad roster.

O’Donnell, 33, was a sixth-round pick of the Chicago Bears in the 2014 draft out of the University of Miami. He played in 145 games across nine years, including eight with the Bears, and one each with the Green Bay Packers and Atlanta Falcons. His stint with the Falcons last year was only on their practice squad.

He’s averaging 45.1 yards per punt across 616 kicks in his career.

Ideally the 49ers wouldn’t need to replace Wishnowsky, who also missed time in the preseason. However, this is something they’ve dealt with on the kicking side where kickers Jake Moody and Matt Wright both suffered injuries that caused them to miss time.

Given the team’s special teams struggles, having to replace reliable players on those units could be a significant issue moving forward.

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49ers injury updates feature bad news for leading pass catcher

Injury updates from Kyle Shanahan, including some concern for TE George Kittle.

The San Francisco 49ers appeared to escape Tampa Bay with a win and no major injury issues, but head coach Kyle Shanahan on Monday had an update that featured a couple of new names.

Shanahan on Sunday after the game said cornerback Renardo Green’s toe injury was the only health issue the team was dealing with. Green is considered day-to-day according to Shanahan’s conference call with reporters on Monday.

That’s overall good news for the standout rookie CB and it doesn’t appear he’ll miss significant time, if any.

Tight end George Kittle is also dealing with what Shanahan classified as “hamstring irritation” during his conference call. He said they’ll manage Kittle throughout the week, but his status for Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks is unclear.

“Kittle had some hamstring irritation today,” Shanahan said. “So we’ll see how the week goes with him, see how he feels on Wednesday.”

Kittle had three catches for 57 yards and a touchdown in Sunday’s win over the Buccaneers. He leads the team with 43 receptions, 560 yards and seven touchdowns in eight games this season. With Brandon Aiyuk already out for the season, missing Kittle for any amount of time would be a significant blow to the 49ers’ offense. He’s a go-to pass catcher for quarterback Brock Purdy and an offensive spark for the 49ers. They don’t have anyone to adequately replace his skill set, so it’ll be all hands on deck in Week 11 if the 49ers are without their All-Pro TE.

Punter Mitch Wishnowsky was dealing with a back injury in the days leading up to Week 10 and he’s now dealing with a “flare up” according to Shanahan. The club is looking into various treatment options for their punter. It’s unclear if Wishnowsky will be able to kick in Week 11. The team doesn’t have another punter on its roster or practice squad as of Monday.

The good news for San Francisco is that running back Christian McCaffrey, and WRs Jauan Jennings and Deebo Samuel didn’t pop up in any of Shanahan’s updates. That’s an indication they all got through the game healthy after dealing with injury problems going into Sunday.

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Mitch Wishnowsky should handle kickoffs for 49ers with new NFL rules

The 49ers should have Mitch Wishnowsky take their kickoffs this year.

Part of the reason the 49ers picked Jake Moody No. 99 overall in the 2023 draft was because of his ability to handle kickoffs. He had the leg to launch his kickoffs through the back of the end zone for touchbacks to eliminate potential big kick returns. Now with the new kickoff rules though, it may behoove the 49ers to put punter Mitch Wishnowsky on kickoffs.

The NFL’s new kickoff rules will ostensibly force kick coverage teams to play along a line of scrimmage in a way that could often leave kickers as a last line of defense more often than they used to be. Having a kicker that can’t stick his nose in and tackle will cost some teams points. The new rules also put the receiving team at the 30 for a touchback to incentivize keeping the ball in the landing zone between the 20 and the goal line.

Kansas City is already experimenting with putting safety Justin Reid on kickoffs to ensure they have a tackler on the field who won’t force them to play 10-on-11 on kickoffs. For the 49ers they don’t have to go that far because Wishnowsky, a former Aussie rules football player, can hit.

Exhibit A from his first preseason:

This is the kind of play that might start being required by kickers under the new rules. The coverage team and return team will line up five yards apart, limiting the amount of layers to a coverage team. One seam in that coverage unit could be enough to spring a long return.

If the kicker isn’t an active part of that coverage, those seams may be easier to come by. If the kicker is flying up like Wishnowsky did in the video above, it could shut the faucet off on what would’ve been a big return that puts the kicker against a returner in space.

Perhaps the 49ers are fine with Moody banging touchbacks still. They might also be fine with him launching kicks high in the air to give the coverage team time to get down the field. Wishnowsky should at least get a look though, particularly if kick coverage becomes a problem for San Francisco.

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49ers punter Mitch Wishnowsky punts ball out of Giants’ Oracle Park in San Francisco

The Giants celebrated the home opener in San Francisco with the help of Mitch Wishnowsky and other members of the 49ers.

After seven games on the road, the San Francisco Giants finally returned to the Bay Area for their first game of the season at Oracle Park. To help celebrate the home opener Friday, the Giants welcomed a few members of the San Franciso 49ers to Willie Mays Plaza.

Wide receiver Deebo Samuel and linebacker Fred Warner stepped to the mound for traditional first pitches before the Giants hosted the San Diego Padres. However, the Giants had something special in mind for 49ers punter Mitch Wishnowsky.

Wishnowsky marked the Giants home opener with a ceremonial “first punt.” The 49ers punter launched a football from right field into the water of McCovey Cove.

Via @NBCSGiants on Twitter:

First pitches and punts from the 49ers helped serve the Giants luck on Friday as they registered a walk-off 3-2 win over the Padres.

This post originally appeared on Niners Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter! 

More than any other in history, Super Bowl LVIII was about special teams

More than any other Super Bowl in history, Super Bowl LVIII was defined by two dominant, record-setting special teams units.

LAS VEGAS — When a Super Bowl ends, the temptation is to put a neat little bow on the whole thing. But when a Super Bowl is as uncertain and messy as Super Bowl LVIII was, it’s tougher to find the dominance that mattered in the end. The San Francisco 49ers’ defense, especially its defensive line, was about as good as any could be, but in the end, it wasn’t enough to contain Patrick Mahomes as the Kansas City Chiefs became the first team since the 2003-04 New England Patriots to repeat as Super Bowl champs.

Not that the Chiefs were anything special on offense. Mahomes was better in the stat sheet than he was on the field — 34 of 46 for 333 yards, two touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 99.3. Beyond his frantic final drive to win the game 25-22 in overtime… well, there were issues.

Kansas City’s defense was equal to the 49ers’ challenge, limiting San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy to 23 completions in 38 attempts for 255 yards, one touchdown, no interceptions, and a passer rating of 89.3. Receiver Jauan Jennings was the best passer on the day, completing one pass on one attempt for a 21-yard touchdown to running back Christian McCaffrey.

So, it was a weird game without an obvious winner… except for two. The special teams units of the Chiefs and 49ers. Per the Elias Sports Bureau, here were all the Super Bowl records set in this game:

  • Most Field Goals Made, Career – 9, Harrison Butker
  • Longest Field Goal Made – 57, Harrison Butker
  • Most 50-Yard Field Goals Made, Game – 2, Jake Moody
  • Highest Average Punting, Game – 50.8, Tommy Townsend & Mitch Wishnowsky
  • Most Fumbles Recovered, Career – 4, Patrick Mahomes
  • Most Field Goals Made, Both Teams – 7, Kansas City (4) vs. San Francisco (3)
  • Highest Average Punting, Team – 50.8, Kansas City & San Francisco
  • Fewest Kickoff Returns, Both Teams – 0, Kansas City vs. San Francisco
  • Fewest Kickoff Return Yards, Both Teams – 0, Kansas City vs. San Francisco

And here were all the records tied in this game:

  • Most Field Goals Attempted, Career – 10, Harrison Butker
  • Most Field Goals Made, Game – 4, Harrison Butker
  • Most Fumbles, Career – 5, Patrick Mahomes
  • Most Consecutive Games Won – 2, Kansas City
  • Most Points Overtime Period, Team – 6, Kansas City
  • Most Field Goals Attempted, Both Teams – 7, Kansas City (4) vs. San Francisco (3)
  • Most Field Goals Made, Team – 4, Kansas City
  • Fewest Rushing Touchdowns, Both Teams – 0, Kansas City vs. San Francisco
  • Fewest Kickoff Returns, Team – 0, Kansas City & San Francisco
  • Fewest Kickoff Returns Yards, Team – 0, Kansas City & San Francisco

The common thread, for the most part? Special teams on both sides. 49ers kicker Jake Moody set a Super Bowl record with a 55-yard field goal with 14:48 left in the first half, and he held that record for less than two game quarters, as Harrison Butker outdid him with a 57-yarder with 5:01 left in the third quarter.

So, when the defenses were spinning, and the offenses were sputtering, it was really the special teams that stood out more than just about anything else — and for the Chiefs, it really helped to win the day.

Who woulda thunk it?

Kyle Shanahan didn’t call fake punt on negated Mitch Wishnowsky run

Did Kyle Shanahan call his first fake punt as a head coach?

It looked like 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan called his first special teams fake as a head coach. Early in the third quarter punter Mitch Wishnowsky took a snap, started to kick, then tucked and ran around the right edge for a 30-yard gain and a first down. Not only was the play negated by an illegal block call on wide receiver Ronnie Bell, it was also not Shanahan’s call.

Shanahan after the game in his press conference joked that he made the call because of his foresight on Seattle’s punt coverage.

“I just knew that it would work good right there,” Shanahan deadpanned. “So I just called my first fake punt.”

It didn’t take long after saying that for a wry smile to crack the head coach’s face.

“I don’t really know what happened on it,” Shanahan confessed. “I think he just hesitated a little bit. I haven’t gotten to talk to him personally. I don’t know if he thought it was going to get blocked, or if he bobbled the snap a hair, or if he just had a glitch, but it was a good one. Because when he paused and stuff and saw the edge, it was obviously a clean look and he didn’t hesitate for it. And I was just told he hit over 20 miles per hour on it, so, that’s real cool.”

Alas, Shanahan has still yet to call a special teams fake as a head coach. Now that he’s seen how his punter moves in that spot though he may be more inclined to give it a shot at some point.

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Updated 49ers MVP rankings: Can anyone catch Christian McCaffrey?

Can anyone catch Christian McCaffrey in the #49ers team MVP race?

It’s pretty clear who the 49ers’ team MVP is through four weeks. An argument for anyone other than running back Christian McCaffrey would require bent logic and mental gymnastics that we’re neither capable nor willing to participate in.

The question heading into Week 5 is whether anyone on the 49ers’ extremely talented roster can even catch McCaffrey.

Here’s what our 49ers team MVP rankings look like through four weeks, with a clear-cut No. 1, and then a handful of others who are playing well and making an impact on winning:

49ers P Mitch Wishnowsky activated off NFI list

Mitch Wishnowsky’s back injury only cost him one day of camp. He’s been activated from the NFI list.

The 49ers on Thursday got good news on punter Mitch Wishnowsky. He passed a physical and was activated from the non-football injury list according to NBC Sports’ Matt Maiocco.

Wishnowsky began camp on the NFI after hurting his back while lifting weights away from the team facility. General manager John Lynch indicated the injury wasn’t something the team thought would be a long-term issue, and it wound up only costing Wishnowsky one day of camp.

The veteran punter was one of four players to miss the opening day of training camp, along with quarterback Brock Purdy, defensive end Nick Bosa and cornerback Darrell Luter.

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No surprise: 4 49ers out of 1st training camp practice

These 4 #49ers missed the team’s first practice of training camp:

The 49ers on Wednesday began their on-field preparations for the 2023 season without four players, although there weren’t any surprises among the absences.

Quarterback Brock Purdy missed Wednesday’s session as part of his new throwing schedule. Head coach Kyle Shanahan said he’ll be on a truncated practice program for the first couple weeks of camp while he continues rehabbing from offseason surgery on his throwing elbow.

Defensive end Nick Bosa is holding out while he continues negotiating his long-term extension. The team officially placed him on the reserve/did not report list Wednesday according to NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero. Bosa isn’t expected to take the field until he has a new deal in place.

Punter Mitch Wishnowsky was out while he nurses a back injury that landed him on the non-football injury list. 49ers general manager John Lynch on Tuesday told reporters the team isn’t going to add another punter because they’re not concerned about his status long-term.

The final player out of Wednesday’s session was rookie cornerback Darrell Luter Jr., who was placed on the PUP list with a knee injury. Lynch said Luter has a bone bruise after hyperextending his knee late in the team’s offseason program.

With the 49ers still easing into camp, Christian McCaffrey sat out of team drills. Head coach Kyle Shanahan after practice indicated the day off for the star RB was scheduled and part of a plan to get McCaffrey to the regular season healthy.

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