We've known for over a week that San Francisco 49ers tackle Garry Gilliam was headed to injured reserve. The team made it official on Tuesday. The 49ers filled the vacant roster spot by signing defensive back Antone Exum Jr. to a one-year deal.
Gilliam suffered an MCL injury during a Week 8 contest against the Philadelphia Eagles. In that game, he started at right tackle in place of Trent Brown, who was out because of a concussion. Zane Beadles initially replaced Gilliam before moving to left tackle to replace an injured Joe Staley.
Brown returned on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals. However, he started at left tackle in place of Staley, who is recovering from an eye injury and is not expected to return until after the 49ers' bye week. Beadles started at left tackle.
The 49ers signed Gilliam, who was a restricted free agent, to a one-year offer sheet worth $2.2 million with $1.4 million guaranteed on April 17. The deal completed two days later after his previous team, the Seattle Seahawks, declined to match the offer. Gilliam played three seasons with Seattle, where appeared in 44 games and started 30.
Exum Jr. was initially drafted in the sixth round by the Minnesota Vikings in 2014. In three years with Minnesota (2014-16), he appeared in 27 games and two starts. Exum Jr. registered 18 tackles, two fumble recoveries, and one forced fumble. He spent the 2016 season on injured reserve and was waived by Minnesota on September 16.