Every NFL team deals with injuries. It's an unfortunate part of the game. But few have been more defined by them in recent seasons than the San Francisco 49 ers, whose injury report has seemed to become a weekly storyline.
The undefeated 49 ers made a cross-country trip this week for a matchup with the Atlanta Falcons. San Francisco will again be without several key players Sunday, including receiver Mike Evans, who is dealing with a sore Achilles, and defensive end Nick Bosa, who has a calf injury. The team’s receiver corps was already thin, with Ricky Pearsall, Deebo Samuel Sr., De’Zhaun Stribling and Demarcus Robinson unable to go Sunday.
The 49 ers also ruled out safety Marques Sigle and linebackers Garret Wallow and Luke Gifford for Week 7. Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan acknowledged the lengthy list of unavailable players and said the 49 ers may not be able to reach the maximum 48 players on the game-day roster.
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Teams can elevate players from the practice squad when injuries leave them thin at a position, but Shanahan does not expect those moves to get San Francisco to 48 players Sunday.
Instead, the former Falcons offensive coordinator said the 49 ers have discussed preparing some players to line up outside their usual positions because of the injuries.
Shanahan said the situation was a first in his coaching career. "I don't think ever in my career [has that happened]," he said. "It's a unique situation."
Veteran receiver Christian Kirk is in line to make his season debut Sunday, Shanahan confirmed. His return from injured reserve would provide a welcome boost for the 49 ers.
Bosa recently shared an optimistic view about being able to return for Week 5 or 6, but the 49 ers kept him out of practice to give him extra recovery time. That optimism seems caught Shanahan off guard, given how carefully Bosa usually assesses his own status.
"I just think he was a little too optimistic, especially for Bosa because he's pretty accurate," Shanahan said.
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"He doesn't say stuff like that unless it's accurate. I just think it surprised him. He worked out after he said that to you guys and the next day was just a little sore, which surprised all of us, and that wasn't a great sign, especially going to playing turf and stuff this week."
Bosa hasn't played since Week 2.
San Francisco will enter its bye week after Sunday’s matchup with the Falcons.