The San Francisco 49ers released their final injury report shortly before taking off for their week 12 road game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Wide receiver Pierre Garçon (knee) and offensive guard Joshua Garnett (thumb) have been ruled out, and linebacker Reuben Foster (hamstring) is listed as questionable.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan said that Garçon is mostly dealing with a pain issue, as opposed to a specific ligament or other kind of structural issue. Garçon has been hampered by injuries much of the season, and has been unproductive as a result. Kendrick Bourne will start in his place, and it leaves me wondering what Garçon’s status will be for 2019. Do the 49ers decide he has hit the wall and part ways? Or do they think he can get healthy in the offseason and give it another go next year?
Foster was listed as limited all week, but Shanahan said he showed improvement as the week progressed. With O.J. Howard placed on injured reserve, Cameron Brate takes over at tight end. The linebackers and safeties will be keeping an eye on Brate and Jacquizz Rodgers, but the big concern with this offense is at wide receiver. We might see linebackers on receivers in the box over the middle of the field, but it’s not quite the same challenge they will face against teams with more to offer from their tight ends and running backs.
The bigger question if Foster returns is how his shoulder will hold up. He has looked like a one-armed man when he’s been on the field, so we’ll see what three weeks off has done for his recovery.
One player not on the injury report worth noting is rookie wide receiver Dante Pettis. He hasn’t been on the injury report since Week 8, but it sounds like he is looking better in practice than he has in recent weeks. On Friday, Kyle Shanahan said Pettis has looked as good this week as he has since Week 1. He’s struggled to get going, but with Garçon sidelined, hopefully we see him start to take advantage of more opportunities.