© David Reginek-USA TODAY Sports
It’s a new season, but the 49ers must be feeling a nauseating bit of deja vu. After one game, they’ve lost two key starters, with one of them done for the season.
The worst news was expected and Kyle Shanahan confirmed it on Monday morning; Jason Verrett, whose career has been plagued by ACL and Achilles injuries, has torn his right ACL and will miss the remainder of the season.
Shanahan described it on Sunday as a “crushing” blow. That’s true from an emotional perspective in how hard Verrett worked to get back to his Pro Bowl-caliber self, and from the fact that he was a lynchpin of the secondary. The 49ers’ cornerback group was among its weakest, and Emmanuel Moseley missed out in Week 1 with a knee injury. Moseley, by the way, is hoped to be able to play this week.
The other piece of brutal news was on Raheem Mostert, who came out of the game on Sunday after three plays. According to Shanahan, he’ll head to injured reserve and is expected to miss about eight weeks with chipped cartilage in his knee. He’ll undergo an arthroscopy to fix the issue.
That leaves Elijah Mitchell, JaMycal Hasty and Trey Sermon as the team’s healthy running backs. On a more optimistic note, Shanahan said he expects Jeff Wilson Jr. to return later this season, around the halfway mark.
“I haven’t asked that for a little bit. I was expecting him [back] close to the halfway mark,” Shanahan said. “He’s definitely on schedule to come back. I think we were saying between weeks six through eight… I know he’ll be helping us some time this year.”
Other injuries and updates are below:
- Dre Greenlaw suffered a groin injury
- Dee Ford sustained a minor ankle sprain, but is expected to play Sunday
- Marcell Harris sustained an oblique injury but should practice on Wednesday
- Javon Kinlaw (knee) had two workouts on Saturday and Sunday, and will be re-evaluated on Wednesday. He has a chance to practice Wednesday, which Shanahan is hoping for, but not expecting