49ers Injury Updates: Week 1 Takes Precedence Over The Preseason

Today is the second-to-last day for the San Francisco 49ers to evaluate their roster. The battle for left guard remains up in the air.

49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said the team isn’t expecting left guard Robert Jones to return until “around Australia.” The team is hopeful Jones can return to practice before they leave the States.

That would mean Jones returns this upcoming weekend and can participate in the three sessions before the 49ers fly to Australia on Wednesday, September 2.

Kurtis Rourke won’t play this Thursday as he recovers from a rib injury. Shanahan said Rourke’s injury wasn’t as bad as the one Jordan James suffered. Rourke had three broken ribs. He’ll still miss the preseason finale, but will return to practice next weekend, according to Shanahan.

Romello Height has missed practice with an ankle injury. Shanahan didn’t expound on that.

It’s “possible” Christian Kirk (calf strain) could begin the season on the Injured Reserve. Vederian Lowe (high-ankle sprain) is another candidate. Both players have been out for about a month now, as their injuries occurred at the end of July.

They each signed as free agents this past offseason for what was effectively the veteran minimum. The 49ers were counting on each to be key depth pieces. The team boards a plane three days after their roster shrinks to 53. Kirk and Lowe have as much of a chance to play in Week 1 as Brandon Aiyuk. We’re unlikely to see them for the first month of the season.

The Injured Reserve list is something the 49ers will lean into. They have eight designations to return during the regular season. You also don’t waste a roster spot on these players. They can afford to be patient with Kirk and Lowe, even if it’s for the first four games of the season — the minimum games a player must sit out if he begins the season on the Injured Reserve.

Shanahan spoke about weighing the health of his roster ahead of roster cuts:

“Most of our guys, besides Ricky and everything, are going to be all right. How good are they Week 1? How good are they going to be Week 2? Those are things that we’ve got to battle out.

“But when you know they’re going to be healthy within those first four weeks, then it’s not as complicated. It’s frustrating, because you’d like ‘em to be there right away. But if they’re not going to be healthy after four weeks, then you can decide about PUP and things like that.”

Speaking of the PUP, Mykel Williams might be a PUP candidate. This year’s rule change allows any player on the reserve/PUP list to begin their 21-day practice period after the team’s second regular-season game.

Shanahan stressed the importance of having two veterans you can designate to return from Injured Reserve when it comes down to roster cuts. It’s worth noting that will automatically count toward the eight designated returns, but using that for two veterans makes the most sense

The plan is to get Nick Bosa into practice next weekend. Shanahan said Bosa is doing well.

George Kittle has been participating in the non-competitive periods of practice. He’s running routes on air, but it doesn’t sound like Kittle is involved in any of the heavy-contact portions of practice. That will change during the next block of practices after the 49ers’ mandatory three days off.

Mike Evans did not practice today with a tight groin. Jacob Cowing also did not practice because of a groin injury. Shanahan is hoping to get Evans back at practice next week; he said, “Same with Mike,” when asked when Cowing would return.

Week 1 is right around the corner for the 49ers. There’s little reason to risk your star players getting dinged up in practice with a division game in two weeks. That quick turnaround is why we’re not going to see many of the starters on Thursday:

“I don’t think you’ll see many starters. We just don’t have enough time as we usually do, so I’ll be surprised if any of them are out there. There might be a couple. But it’ll be closer to how Week 1 looked.”

Right guard Dominick Puni complained about having residual effects of a concussion after practice. Shanahan said Puni’s “most likely back in” the concussion protocol.

Upton Stout didn’t practice because of a hip flexor. He’s also expected to return next week.

According to The Athletic’s Matt Barrows, 24 players didn’t practice in full on Tuesday. The 49ers are a week and a day away from getting on a plane for the longest trip they’ll take all season.

Shanahan said the biggest challenges of this trip are having enough time and staying healthy. The 49ers are doing everything they can to control the injury variable ahead of Week 1.