Overview
- The team placed four players on the practice/injury list for Wednesday: offensive linemen Carver Willis (concussion) and Brett Toth (undisclosed), fullback Kyle Juszczyk (fractured finger), and wide receiver Jacob Cowing (hip flexor).
- Several key players also sat out with general soreness or lingering issues, including Nick Bosa, Osa Odighizuwa, Dre Greenlaw, and receivers Mike Evans, De’Zhaun Stribling, and Christian Kirk, further shrinking available reps.
- The absences forced the 49ers to run many second‑team snaps with third‑ and fourth‑string personnel, which coaches say has degraded the quality of those reps and complicated preseason evaluations.
- Cowing’s hip flexor is particularly consequential because he is a fringe roster candidate with prior injuries and missing practice time could hurt his chance to make the final roster; mild hip flexor strains often take a week or two to heal depending on severity.
- The rise in contact during the current live‑pad phase leaguewide has produced more practice injuries, prompting teams to limit workloads, adjust practice plans, and make earlier roster moves as the preseason progresses.