The San Francisco 49ers announced several roster moves on Thursday. The team is placing rookie wide receiver Jalen Hurd and cornerback Jason Verrett on injured reserve. To fill the roster spots, the 49ers are re-signing cornerback Dontae Johnson to the active roster on a one-year deal and offensive lineman Will Holden to the practice squad.
Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports that the 49ers also plan to re-sign veteran wide receiver Jordan Matthews.
The #49ers are planning to re-sign veteran WR Jordan Matthews, league sources say. Matthews is expected to take Jalen Hurd's roster spot, as the rookie receiver is headed to IR. Sounds like the Niners want to give Hurd's back fracture time to heal.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) October 3, 2019
Hurd suffered a back injury during the 49ers' second preseason game and hadn't played or practiced since then. San Francisco made Hurd a third-round draft pick out of Baylor in April.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan sounded hopeful on September 23 that Hurd was recovering well and would be ready for Week 5. That will not be the case.
"I mean, he had a fracture in his back," Shanahan said. "A hairline deal, something. It's been a serious injury, that's why he had to rest it for about a month, and we're getting close to where he should be ready to go. Hopefully, it'll work out right for him. You never know when they come back out if that can act up again, but we feel it's healing up, and hopefully, he'll be able to come out here and help us."
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The 49ers signed Verrett to a one-year deal on March 14. He has now landed on injured reserve during five of his six NFL seasons.
Verrett replaced an injured Ahkello Witherspoon against the Pittsburgh Steelers during Week 3 but lasted just three snaps on defense and was pulled in favor of Emmanuel Moseley after giving up two big plays.
"The other day certainly wasn't a great debut for him," general manager John Lynch said during a KNBR interview on September 27. "I think he was very frustrated, but it's the first time he's played football in a long time. He came out of the game a little nicked up, so we'll see where he is health-wise."
The 49ers now have four candidates to bring back from IR: defensive lineman Kentavius Street (knee), receiver Trent Taylor (foot), Jason Verrett (knee) and Jalen Hurd (back). Teams only can give that designation to two players.
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) October 3, 2019
The 49ers made Johnson a fourth-round selection out of NC State in 2014, and he remained with the team through the 2017 season. Johnson spent last year with the Seattle Seahawks, Buffalo Bills, and Arizona Cardinals and rejoined San Francisco on May 28, 2019 after a brief offseason stop with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Johnson was released as part of the roster cuts on August 30 and then spent a couple of weeks with the Los Angeles Chargers before being released on Saturday. He has accumulated 158 combined tackles, 21 passes defensed, two interceptions, and two touchdowns through his six NFL seasons.
The 49ers initially signed Holden to their practice squad on September 17. He was released on October 1.