Fooch's Update No. 2: Barrows is reporting the injury is "significant", and Dorsey will have surgery, but it is still unknown if he will miss the entire season.
Fooch's Update - Barrows had a pair of tweets:
Different league source confirms Dorsey's injury but says it hasn't been determined whether he's out for year or not ...
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) August 2, 2014
... Ray McDonald tore his biceps last year and played through the injury. More tests will be done on Dorsey over next few days.
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) August 2, 2014
Fooch's Note: Site decorum is off
ESPN's Adam Schefter is reporting Glenn Dorsey suffered a torn bicep and is out for the season. Dorsey injured his arm during practice on Friday, and after getting it looked at, did not return. Clearly it was worse than any of us expected. This is a big blow to the 49ers defensive line. Dorsey stepped in at nose tackle after Ian Williams broke his ankle, and was outstanding. Even if Williams were to return, Dorsey would have been huge for depth across the line.
Earlier this morning, James took a look at the nose tackle depth chart in light of the injury. The 49ers have since released their first depth chart. It lists Glenn Dorsey first, then Quinton Dial, then Mike Purcell. It's an unofficial depth chart courtesy of the 49ers PR department, so it does not lock in necessarily with what the coaching staff will do. Dial has been getting a lot of outside work, but he does have some experience at nose tackle. Given Dorsey's injury, and Ian Williams' unknown return date, I'd imagine Dial will get a lot more work. Dial has reportedly looked good in his defensive tackle work, but the 49ers are now at a point where adjustments need to be made. It makes sense to rotate him in there at nose tackle.
Tony Jerod-Eddie will get more work as well, but Mike Purcell is also now the guy to watch. The 49ers signed Purcell back after the 2013 NFL Draft as an undrafted free agent. He spent all of last season on the practice squad, and was signed to a reserve/future contract earlier this year. He'll get extensive opportunities in the preseason.
And of course, we are left to wonder what's up with Ian Williams. The 49ers will not rush him back, even with the injury, but his rehab will be something to follow. If he is activated off the PUP list before the end of training camp, he would seemingly have the best shot of taking back that nose tackle role. There is the question of conditioning, but the 49ers nose tackle does not spend nearly as much time on the field as others given the 49ers extensive use of nickel and dime defense.