The San Francisco 49ers return to practice Wednesday afternoon, which means we will get our first practice participation report. On Monday, we took an early look at the injury issues. Today, the 49ers had player availability in the locker room, which means we got some modest updates from injured players.
Carlos Rogers said he planned to play on Sunday, so long as he had no setbacks the rest of this week. He believes he is on track to return, but as Vic Fangio said last week, he needs to get back on the practice field to be active on Sunday. He has three opportunities to do so this week, so we'll see how it plays out.
Perrish Cox has played in place of Rogers the last two weeks. He would do so again if Rogers can't play. In Week 14, the 49ers had Eric Wright handling nickel duties. Tarell Brown was out with an injury, and Perrish Cox was not on the roster. Wright played 16 of 53 snaps, as the 49ers were content using safeties and others to help cover that third receiver.
Will Tukuafu addressed the media as well, and described his situation as day-to-day. Tukuafu said he is preparing to play, and wouldn't be at the facility otherwise. He is walking, which is a big plus, but as with Rogers, it will depend on his practice status this week.
If Tukuafu can't go, we'll see some mix of Anthony Dixon and Vance McDonald at fullback. The 49ers gave McDonald a lot more opportunities at fullback than we might otherwise have expected. On Monday, Coach Harbaugh acknowledged that McDonald got more opportunities with the fullback role than he might otherwise have gotten.