San Francisco 49ers Fearful Jalen Hurd Suffered Torn ACL

Second-year wide receiver Jalen Hurd went down to an injury during San Francisco 49ers practice in Santa Clara on Sunday. Reports from the training camp site concluded that Hurd walked gingerly off the field.

We now have more information on this, and it’s not good. According to multiple media reports, San Francisco is fearful that Hurd suffered a torn ACL on the play.

A third-round pick of the 49ers back in 2019, Hurd missed his entire rookie season due to a back injury. The former Baylor and Tennessee standout had impressed big time during the exhibition slate before suffering said injury last August.

This now means that Hurd will miss each of his first two seasons in the NFL. While San Francisco’s brass expects him back in 2021, it has to be seen as concerning.

“It’s a pretty unfortunate thing for him,” Shanahan said Monday, via the 49ers’ official website. “We know what he went through last year with his back. The guy was working as hard as anybody on our team to get back. For him to get hurt before he actually got to go out there – just a freak-thing on air. Really felt bad for the guy. But he’ll be back next year.”

It also impacts the 49ers’ depth at wide receiver with Deebo Samuel and Richie James both still sidelined.

It was late last week that San Francisco signed veteran wide receivers Tavon Austin and J.J. Nelson to help from a depth perspective. The 49ers also worked out veteran receiver Jaron Brown on Monday.

All three have had varying levels of success in their careers. A top-10 pick of the then-St. Louis Rams back in 2013, Austin tallied north of 900 total yards with nine touchdowns in 2015. Although, he’s been limited to 34 receptions over the past three seasons. It’s expected that Austin will see more time in the backfield should he make the team. The former West Virginia star actually has more rushing yards than receiving yards since the start of the 2017 season.

Much like Austin, Nelson has not done too much in recent seasons. Splitting time between the Cardinals and Raiders, he’s caught 11 passes over the past two years. That came after the former mid-round pick tallied nearly 1,100 combined yards in 2016 and 2017.

Spencer Long Announces Retirement

Mere days after signing with San Francisco following his release from the Buffalo Bills, the 29-year-old Long shockingly announced his retirement. The 49ers had brought Long in for depth after he started 44 combined games in six NFL seasons.

It’s obvious that general manager John Lynch is looking for depth along the interior of the offensive line. Starting center Weston Richburg could very well open the season on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list. Ben Garland will likely start at center in his stead with Tom Compton and Daniel Brunskill competing for the right guard job.

Other Injury Updates

San Francisco should be getting both K’Waun Williams (calf tightness) and Arik Armstead (back tightness) back at practice on Thursday. One of the top slot corners in the NFL, Williams has missed each of the past two practice sessions. Meanwhile, Armstead has been sidelined since late last week.

The last thing we want to hear are injuries popping up at this clip with Week 1 against the Arizona Cardinals less than a month away. At the very least, both of these injuries seem minor.

Rookie First-Round Pick Brandon Aiyuk Impressing Big Time

The Arizona State product is already making sweet music with quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo during the early stages of training camp practice.

This has to qualify as some tremendous news for a 49ers receiving group that heads into the 2020 season among the biggest question marks on the roster. Aiyuk’s performance also has not been lost on his teammates.

“I think he’s (Aiyuk) a real intelligent guy,” Trent Taylor told reporters recently. “He’s got his head on straight, the type of guy who’s never too high on the highs or too low on the lows. I think, from what we’ve seen so far, he’s been picking everything up pretty well, and he could end up being a great piece for us.”

The 49ers are obviously going to be relying a lot on Aiyuk as a rookie. He’s slated to start opposite Kendrick Bourne until Samuel returns at some point early in the season.

Will The 49ers Sign Another Veteran Wide Receiver?

As I noted above, San Francisco has brought in two veteran receivers and is looking at adding a third. The question now is whether this team actually decides to go big-game hunting at wide receiver.

Veteran Pro Bowler Dez Bryant will work out with the Baltimore Ravens this week after being away from football each of the past two seasons. Someone of Bryant’s ilk could make sense for the 49ers on a prove-it deal.

Two embattled veterans in that of Josh Gordon and Antonio Brown are also on the radar of NFL teams heading into the season. Gordon has yet to be reinstated by the league after his latest suspension. Meanwhile, Brown is facing a six-game suspension to start the season.

San Francisco has been clear regarding its lack of interest in the highly volatile Brown. Although, the team had in the past been linked to Gordon dating back to his days with the Cleveland Browns.