As 49ers’ injuries begin to stack up, potential roster issues arrise

The San Francisco 49ers are managing an accumulation of depth-chart injuries just two weeks into their season, creating roster management challenges for head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch. Wide receiver Demarcus Robinson and defensive tackle James Thompson Jr. are both sidelined with high-ankle sprains that usually take three to six weeks to recover from, though neither has been placed on injured reserve yet.

NFL teams are permitted only eight designated-to-return activations from injured reserve per season. With 15 games remaining, Shanahan explained that the team must carefully manage these limited slots, weighing whether keeping players on the active 53-man roster temporarily is preferable to depleting their allotted return spots later in the year.