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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49ers rookie was NFL’s best in Week 8

The 49ers’ defensive back landed at the top of PFF’s latest set of rookie rankings for Week 8.

During their much-needed win over the Dallas Cowboys in Week 8, the San Francisco 49ers’ rookie class stood out. Rookies Ricky Pearsall, Isaac Guerendo, Dominic Puni, Renardo Green and Malik Mustapha all helped contribute to the 49ers’ 30-24 win over the Cowboys.

Following their impressive performance against the Cowboys, one member of the 49ers earned the top spot on Pro Football Focus’ latest ranking list. Rookie defensive back Renardo Green was the highest-graded rookie of Week 8 with a 91.3 grade. Green finished ahead of fellow rookies Jer’Zhan Newton, Brian Thomas, Ladd McConkey, Bucky Irving and first-round quarterback Bo Nix.

Via @PFF on Twitter:

However, Green was not only the highest-rated rookie, the 49ers corned was the highest-graded cornerback across the NFL of Week 8. Green was named to the PFF team of the week for Week 8. Green finished as the highest-graded 49ers, sliding in over George Kittle, Ji’Ayir Brown, Deebo Samuel and Deommodore Lenoir.

Via @PFF_49ers on Twitter:

Green finished the game with three tackles against the Cowboys on Sunday Night Football.

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

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49ers injury updates from Kyle Shanahan heading into Bye week

Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel and Jordan Mason headline a laundry list of injury updates from Kyle Shanahan on Monday.

San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan spoke with reporters on a conference call Monday and provided some injury updates for the team heading into their Week 9 Bye.

Shanahan said wide receiver Deebo Samuel is considered day-to-day with a rib injury and an oblique strain. It’s unclear what his status would be if the 49ers had a game in Week 9, but having a week off to get right should be helpful for the 49ers’ former All-Pro WR.

Samuel had a good game Sunday night against the Dallas Cowboys before exiting with what the team classified as a rib injury. He had four catches for 71 yards and four carries for 15 yards. He also had a 66-yard touchdown catch wiped out because of a penalty. Samuel will be re-evaluated after the Bye.

Running back Jordan Mason also left Sunday’s game early after re-injuring the shoulder he hurt in Week 6. Shanahan on Sunday night told reporters Mason might have been able to re-enter the game, but they stuck with rookie Isaac Guerendo who was having a strong performance.

Mason will also be re-evaluated after the Bye week.

It stands to reason the 49ers won’t need him to shoulder as much of the workload after the Bye with Christian McCaffrey expected to return. However, if his shoulder isn’t right, we could see Guerendo take over the RB2 carries while Mason heals.

Rookie cornerback Renardo Green, who was the 49ers’ highest-graded defensive player by Pro Football Focus on Sunday night, hurt his ankle late in the game. Shanahan said he’s day-to-day, which is a good sign that he’ll be okay after the week off.

Second-year linebacker Dee Winters has also been diagnosed with a concussion and is in the concussion protocol. He took a pair of hard hits to the head while making a special teams tackle Sunday night.

Meanwhile, the receiving corps took another hit. Veteran WR Chris Conley is dealing with a hamstring injury and is considered week-to-week.

Some good news on that front though: Shanahan said the team is expecting Jauan Jennings to return after the Bye from a hip injury that cost him Weeks 7 and 8. Jennings is third on the 49ers in receiving yards and second in receiving touchdowns despite missing their last two contests.

Shanahan also reiterated the plan is for McCaffrey’s practice window Monday after the Bye in hopes of getting him a bonus practice that day and a full week of practice to ramp up for their Week 10 game in Tampa Bay. McCaffrey will go through a simulated week of practice over the Bye to ensure he’s ready to return to action for the first time this season.

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49ers injury updates immediately following huge win over Cowboys

Injury updates for the 49ers:

The San Francisco 49ers paid a bit of a price for their Week 8 win over the Dallas Cowboys.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan had a quartet of injury updates after the game with four players who were banged up and didn’t return to action.

Running back Jordan Mason in the first half hurt the same shoulder he injured in Week 8. He left to the locker room early and returned for the second half with his helmet, but he never entered the game in the second half. Shanahan said Mason might have been able to return.

“Maybe he could’ve,” Shanahan said. “But Isaac (Guerendo) was rolling and he did a good job.”

Guerendo had 85 yards on 14 carries in Mason’s stead.

Wide receiver Deebo Samuel left the game in the fourth quarter with a rib injury. It’s unclear when he was injured, but he was unable to re-enter the game in some key situations late in the contest.

On the defensive side, linebacker Dee Winters left with a concussion he sustained while covering a kickoff. Rookie cornerback Renardo Green also hurt his ankle.

Shanahan didn’t have long-term prognoses for any of the players hurt in Week 8, but with the 49ers’ Bye week in Week 9, they’ll have some extra time to get right in time for a post-Bye playoff push.

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It may be showtime for 49ers rookie after recent injury news in secondary

Another injury may force a rookie into the 49ers’ starting lineup.

The rash of injuries that have plagued the 49ers’ offense have now trickled over to the defensive side.

In a bit of a surprise, All-Pro cornerback Charvarius Ward was held out of Thursday’s practice because of knee and hamstring injuries. He was a full participant in Wednesday’s session, indicating the pair of injuries are new.

Defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen told reporters in a press conference after Thursday’s practice that Ward has some soreness and that the team is trying to be smart with the veteran CB. However, an absence in the middle of the week typically doesn’t bode well for a player’s chances to play. We’ll get official word on Ward’s status Friday afternoon.

If Ward is unable to go, all signs point to rookie second-round pick Renardo Green getting the start as the 49ers’ nickel corner. Sorensen during his press conference had a glowing review of Green.

“He’s looked great,” Sorensen said. “He continually gets better. So we’ve got total confidence in Renardo. He’s very competitive, he’s always wanting to learn, he is learning. Just feel great about him.”

The 49ers turned to Green in a dime package with four cornerbacks on the field in Week 2 against the Vikings. It marked his first regular season action as a pro. He played just four snaps. Head coach Kyle Shanahan indicated Green may be a part of their defensive plan moving forward following his brief playing time in Minnesota.

If Ward winds up missing Sunday’s game in Los Angeles, Deommodore Lenoir and Isaac Yiadom would likely be the starting outside CBs with Green stepping into the slot in nickel packages.

The 49ers and Rams kick off from SoFi Stadium at 1:25pm Pacific Time on Sunday.

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2 49ers rookies may see more playing time after Week 2 debuts

Could these 49ers rookies see more playing time after their brief Week 2 outings?

A pair of San Francisco 49ers rookies made their debuts on the defensive side of the ball in Week 2.

Cornerback Renardo Green and safety Malik Mustapha both saw action on defense against the Minnesota Vikings after only playing on special teams in the season opener vs. the New York Jets.

Green played four snaps as a fourth cornerback. Mustapha rotated in at strong safety with veteran George Odum and played 31 snaps.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters on Wednesday that both players could see similar roles against the Rams depending on how their game plan shakes out.

“Possibly. They have to be ready, always, in case of an injury,” Shanahan said. “I could say they don’t have any plans to play or to go in and then one play happens and they’re in the rest of the game. It was nice to mix Malik in last week. I thought he did well with his reps. Renardo came in on a couple of dime packages and he did well with his reps too. So possibly with the scheme, whatever that is this week, we can keep building off that. But if not, they’re always one play away from playing the rest of the game.”

Green is still behind Isaac Yiadom on the 49ers’ depth chart, and it doesn’t sound like he’s going to pass him despite a tough game from Yiadom in Minnesota. If the rookie second-round pick does play it’ll likely be in the dime package like the one he played in against the Vikings.

Mustapha is a more interesting case because starting strong safety Talanoa Hufanga is expected to return in Week 3. However, Hufanga’s workload is still a question mark. If he ends up not playing a full complement of snaps, we could see Mustapha rotate in as the backup.

Regardless of their roles in 2024, both Green and Mustapha figure to play big parts in the 49ers’ defense in 2025 and beyond.

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49ers depth chart: DC reveals who 3rd starting cornerback will be

We know now who the 49ers’ 3 starting CBs will be.

The nickel cornerback spot was one of the few starting lineup questions for the San Francisco 49ers heading into training camp.

Charvarius Ward and Deommodore Lenoir were both locked in as starters, but the nickel CB job was up for grabs with a handful of contenders. As camp and the preseason churned on, veteran Isaac Yiadom and rookie second-round pick Renardo Green emerged as the top options to earn starting jobs.

Defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen told reporters after Friday’s practice the club has an answer at that spot. Rather than playing coy, Sorensen divulged the 49ers would lean toward the veteran as the third CB.

“Well how we’ve been going has been how it started out, with Ike (Yiadom) and DMo (Lenoir) and Mooney (Ward),” Sorensen said. “And then we’ve been rotating guys through and getting a lot of reps with them as well. But that’s how it’s going right now. And Renardo (Green) rotating in.”

Lenoir and Ward figure to be the two outside corners in the 49ers’ base defense. In the more commonly-used nickel packages, Yiadom will take over an outside spot while Lenoir kicks inside to the slot.

Green worked primarily in the slot during his first training camp. If he rotates in it would likely be in the slot with Lenoir staying outside.

This is in line with how the 49ers approached the third CB job last year. They didn’t have a rookie, but they had veterans Ambry Thomas and Isaiah Oliver.

Thomas would play outside in nickel with Lenoir in the slot. If Oliver was in, he’d play in the slot with Lenoir outside.

Nickel CB was a pretty significant problem for the 49ers last season. Ward and Lenoir were both very good, but their third CB spot was up-and-down all year.

This season they have some options again, but they’ll lean on Yiadom who is coming off his best season as a pro. If he picks up where he left off with the Saints last season and Lenoir continues his ascension toward being a Pro Bowl caliber slot CB, the 49ers will have solved a significant issue in their secondary.

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4 49ers rookies change jersey numbers after final cuts

Hot of the presses! New jersey numbers are out for 49ers rookies:

The San Francisco 49ers had a quartet of rookies change their jersey numbers once the dust settled from final cuts.

Cornerback Renardo Green, safety Malik Mustapha, wide receiver Jacob Cowing and running back Isaac Guerendo all made number changes ahead of the team’s Tuesday bonus practice according to the Athletic’s Matt Barrows.

Green, who rocked No. 31 during the preseason, changed his number to 0. That jersey was previously worn by CB Samuel Womack, who was waived at final cuts. The Indianapolis Colts claimed him off waivers.

That jersey number has only ever been worn by Womack in 49ers history. He began wearing it last season when the NFL changed its jersey number rules.

Mustapha wore No. 43 in the preseason, a traditional safety number. He will now wear No. 6 in the regular season. He joins Deommodore Lenoir and Charvarius Ward as players wearing single digits in the 49ers secondary. Safeties Talanoa Hufanga and Ji’Ayir Brown wear 29 and 27, respectively.

Cowing was another player who wore a traditional number for his position in camp. His preseason jersey number was 83. He’ll now wear No. 19, which was most recently worn by WR Deebo Samuel. Samuel changed to No. 1 this offseason.

During camp, veteran WR Trent Taylor rocked the No. 19 jersey. He was released and then re-signed to the practice squad. His new numbers is 81 since he didn’t retain his jersey number after camp because of his release.

Perhaps the most notable change is Guerendo, who wore No. 49 in the preseason. That is an objectively atrocious number for a running back. He’s now wearing No. 31 – still not great, but better than 49.

Green and RB Ke’Shawn Vaughn were both No. 31 in camp. Vaughn was waived and re-signed to the practice squad. Green, of course, relinquished 31 to take No. 0.

We may see plenty of these jerseys on the field in the season opener on Sept. 9. Green could be the team’s starting slot corner, while Guerendo and Cowing could both start as returners on special teams.

The rest of the rookie class will apparently retain their numbers. First-round pick Ricky Pearsall is No. 14, third-round pick Dominick Puni is No. 77, and seventh-round pick Tatum Bethune will stay with No. 48.

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49ers rookie CB ascending quickly thanks to newfound versatility

The 49ers finally made a sizable draft investment at CB and it looks like it could pay off right away.

The San Francisco 49ers might have something in their secondary.

After years of prioritizing the defensive line and not investing heavily in cornerback during the draft, the 49ers finally spent a second-round pick on Florida State cornerback Renardo Green in 2024. They selected him No. 64 overall — marking the earliest they’d ever taken a CB in the Kyle Shanahan-John Lynch era.

With an opening in the starting lineup, there was hope that Green may be able to step in right away as a starter. He primarily played outside corner in college, but the team quickly moved him into the slot which is an entirely new position.

That might have pushed Green into a situation where he was left out of the starting lineup as he learned a new position, but defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen told reporters in a press conference after Wednesday’s practice that the early move inside has only benefitted the rookie CB.

“Both spots. That was kind of the plan,” Sorensen said. “I wanted to give him the harder stuff early, because he hadn’t played in there. It’s always easier, I think, to move back out to what you’re used to, then to try something really new. Then if we did it later, it would have been like, oh my gosh, blow your mind. Where when we gave him the hard stuff early, then he handled it while also playing corner. So now it’s like, let’s get you focused on playing outside and see if it clears your mind. Let you just play. Now he just kind of has to know both. Just like [DB Deommodore Lenoir] Demo does. We like to challenge our guys and see what they can handle. And when you see that they can handle it, it’s awesome. It gives you that flexibility. And he’s just a competitive kid that’s smart, that wants to do it right.”

It appears the main competition for the third CB spot is between Green and veteran CB Isaac Yiadom. The latter only plays outside and has primarily been a special teams contributor throughout his career, but looked to be on track to win the third CB job before an injury sidelined him for a few weeks in camp.

That opened the door for Green who has flashed in practice and during the 49ers’ pair of preseason games. He took full advantage of the opportunities.

Even if the club decides to go with Yiadom in the starting lineup right away, Green has done everything to point his arrow in the right direction going into his first regular season. Perhaps he contributes right away, but even if he doesn’t, he’s on track to be a factor in the secondary for the foreseeable future. That would be a really nice return on the team’s first big draft investment at CB.

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Position change could give 49ers rookie CB Renardo Green chance to start in Year 1

Versatility could be the key for #49ers rookie CB Renardo Green earning a starting job right away.

One of the few question marks on the 49ers depth chart sits at the cornerback position where the third spot alongside Charvarius Ward and Deommodore Lenoir remains wide open. Defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen on Wednesday had some strong praise for rookie Renardo Green, who is trying out a new position with San Francisco.

The 49ers selected Green in the second round – the earliest they’ve picked a CB in the Kyle Shanahan era and it sounds like he may have a chance to earn a starting job in Year 1 thanks to his willingness to compete in the slot and outside.

“I’ve been really happy with Renardo,” Sorensen told reporters in his post-practice press conference. “The cool thing is he’s been doing both nickel and corner and it’s not a lot of time right? It’s a certain amount of practices and hasn’t fully been a nickel. So, he’s really embraced the challenge of it. That’s the best part. Like it’s never perfect because now all of a sudden we’re teaching you all these different coverages, but there’s also run fits too and then that changes. And guess what? You can’t like fully trigger and feel the physicality of the line because there’s rules and those guys aren’t playing the same. But just with him, it’s just the mentality and the competitiveness that I love. We knew the movement skill was there and you see it in man-to-man stuff and he gets those too. But just like he’s embraced any challenge that’s anything that’s hard I think he’s embraced and he’s kind of attacked it and willingly been like, ‘no man, I want more of that.’ And that’s really been awesome.”

There’s some flexibility at that third starting spot because of Lenoir’s versatility. He can play both in the slot and outside, so the 49ers don’t have to be picky about exactly what position the third CB will play.

Green primarily played outside in college, but the 49ers are getting him work at both spots during his transition to the NFL. How he handles that transition once pads come on will determine where he competes as a rookie and if he can earn a starting job out of training camp.

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