Erik Magnuson thought he broke his foot vs. Seahawks but played through injury

The San Francisco 49ers lost Erik Magnuson to injured reserve following the team’s game against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 12. Actually, they should have lost him to it much earlier in the game, as Magnuson said that he purposely kept the information that he hurt his foot until after the game.

Magnuson wound up having torn ligaments in his foot, a serious injury that he hopefully did not exacerbate with further play. But Magnuson himself didn’t even know that’s what was wrong: he thought it was broken.

“I immediately knew something was wrong because I felt it pop,” Magnuson said. “My first reaction was ‘Man, I broke my foot.’”

Magnuson stayed in the game because the 49ers were shorthanded already — hence him filling in for Trent Brown at right tackle to begin with — and he didn’t want to let the team down.

That’s a nice thought and all, and Kyle Shanahan has even spoken positively to Magnuson about the decision, but hopefully players ... don’t do that going forward. It’s not worth the risk of serious career damage for one game.

“I just had them tape over my shoe and tape my foot real tight so I couldn’t feel it,” Magnuson said. “I didn’t really think there would be long-term consequences if I kept playing.”

Fortunately, Magnuson seems to realize he probably shouldn’t keep things from the medical staff, especially when he admits he heard a pop. “I figured the damage was already done,” Magnuson said, “but looking back on it I think it probably would have been smart to get some help.”

Magnuson has been decent filling in this season. The line has been bad as a whole and Magnuson has lost his fair share of battles, but he’s still looked better than guys like Laken Tomlinson and Zane Beadles.