The San Francisco 49ers are promoting defensive end Alex Barrett from the practice squad to the active roster, according to his agent and via Matt Barrows of The Athletic.
Per agent @kenny_zuckerman, the #49ers are promoting DE Alex Barrett from the practice squad to the active roster.
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) October 6, 2020
Head coach Kyle Shanahan said on Monday that the team was unlikely to bring in defensive line help from outside the organization before this weekend's game against the Miami Dolphins.
"It's kind of hard to bring guys in," Shanahan explained, "and there's not a ton out there right now. We've done it, I feel, as well as we can so far. And when you do bring guys in, with all the COVID testing rules and stuff, I think the earliest we could get them is by Friday. If they're not here today (Monday), I think it's Saturday.
"I don't know know if we'll be able to do that this week. I doubt it. We'll go with what we've got, and we'll see who's ready to go."
The 49ers plan to place Ezekiel Ansah on injured reserve after the defensive end suffered a biceps tear during the loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday night. It was yet another loss to the already injury-depleted defensive line.
Barrett entered the NFL with the Detroit Lions in 2017 as an undrafted free agent out of San Diego State. He played for the San Diego Fleet of the now-defunct Alliance of American Football (AAF) during its 2019 season before signing with the Oakland Raiders on April 5, 2019.
The Raiders waived/injured Barrett on August 30, 2019, and he cleared waivers, reverting to injured reserve. Oakland released him with an injury settlement on September 3, 2019.
The 49ers initially signed Barrett on November 27, 2019, and the defender has spent time on and off the roster since then.
The 49ers were able to work out several defensive linemen today, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network. Given what Shanahan said, they were probably lined up well ahead of time and before Ansah's injury.
The team also worked out wide receivers Damon Sheehy-Guiseppi and Doug Johnson Jr.
The #49ers worked out a bunch of DLs today to add one to the practice squad in Barrett's place.
Also working out for them was WR Damon Sheehy-Guiseppi, the former #Browns returner who slept outside a gym and talked his way into a workout for a shot. Dream still alive. https://t.co/DLnmE3N32G
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) October 6, 2020
God thank you for the opportunity, Thank you @49ers for having me in for a workout. Thank you @MartinMayhew35
AGTG 🙏 pic.twitter.com/oxztlbFPFA
— Doug Johnson Jr (@2Fast4U_2) October 6, 2020