The San Francisco 49ers may be getting back a couple players in the near future. Jim Tomsula said that linebackers Michael Wilhoite and Nick Bellore are both trending up, and moving closer to returning from the NFI and Illness lists. Tomsula said he will not push for them to be activated, but once the doctors clear them, they will be back in action.
Getting Bellore back will impact special teams, while Wilhoite obviously impacts inside linebacker. The team has been slim at ILB this month, but when Wilhoite gets back, and NaVorro Bowman gets into game action, the depth will return. Shayne Skov showed he can handle a sizable snap-load, but I'm sure the 49ers would like to mix it up a bit in the preseason.
Wilhoite's impending return hurts Skov's roster chances. But with Philip Wheeler also injured (muscle strain, but not on an injury list), Skov will continue getting a lot of work. Nick Moody seems a certainty to make the 49ers roster, but his role is something that is also up in the air with Wilhoite's potential return. Moody has been getting starting reps, but it is hard to tell what happens when Wilhoite returns.
I figured ILB was pretty much set before training camp, with Wilhoite and Bowman starting. Now, I don't think anybody can say with certainty who will end up starting next to Bowman. Who do you see in the starting lineup when the 49ers hit the field for their Week 1 opener against the Minnesota Vikings?