Cam Inman of the Mercury News reported today that, according to San Francisco 49ers center Daniel Kilgore himself, he is on track in his recovery.
The best case scenario would be a return in about a month. He is eligible to return following the 49ers' October 18 game against the Baltimore Ravens. That would be in time for their October 22 game against the rival Seattle Seahawks.
That would certainly be a boost for a 49ers offensive line that has struggled greatly over the first three weeks of the season. Questionable offseason decisions and the abrupt retirement of T Anthony Davis has resulted in a unit that cannot protect QB Colin Kaepernick. While Kaepernick can be blamed for much of his struggles, a shaky offensive line has not helped.
From @PFF: Colin Kaepernick has been pressured on 43.2% of his dropbacks, the highest percentage of any current starting quarterback.
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) September 30, 2015
Today, beat writer Ryan Sakamoto examined the team's offensive line woes.
Marcus Martin has been filling in for Kilgore. While doing so, he has ranked as the 49ers' worst offensive player with a -11.5 rating by Pro Football Focus. Coming in second was T Erik Pears (-7.6) and third was G Jordan Devey (-5.8), a player that the 49ers traded for during the offseason. That accounts for the right side of the offensive line.
However, Inman states that an October 22 return might be "overly optimistic."
Kilgore revealed Wednesday his June procedure included the replacement of serious "hardware" — 12 screws and a plate — to stabilize his fibula. He said his conditioning will be the biggest challenge once he's cleared to practice, and once he starts practicing, the 49ers have three weeks to determine whether to activate him, which could come as late as December or not at all.
Today, head coach Jim Tomsula said that there were no plans to shake up the 49ers roster following the team's back-to-back blowout losses.
