Like the wide receiver room, the San Francisco 49ers' defensive line has taken a hit from injuries this season. The latest setback came Sunday when rookie defensive tackle James Thompson Jr. suffered an ankle injury.
The 49ers fear Thompson suffered a high-ankle sprain, which could sideline him for some time. With injuries continuing to pile up along the defensive line, the team may soon need to bring in veteran help.
After Sunday's 35-13 win over the Miami Dolphins, head coach Kyle Shanahan said the 49ers have already started exploring their options. Matt Barrows of The Athletic asked Shanahan if the team might consider a familiar option in pass rusher Leonard Floyd, who spent the 2024 season with San Francisco.
"Yeah," Shanahan said. "I mean, we always look at that. That's stuff that, as soon as we lost [DE] Sam [Okuayinonu] and stuff, we talked to Leonard, we talked to a couple of people. But we'll see how this goes. There's no one that's for sure (likely to sign). But we'll see.
With losing James possibly today—we'll see what his ankle injury is. It's a little different position with inside players, but we've lost about three guys here in the last two games, so we've got to do something eventually."
With Okuayinonu out for an extended period, defensive tackle Alfred Collins (knee) out for the season, defensive end Mykel Williams (ACL) starting the season on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list, and now Thompson potentially facing time on the sideline, the 49ers may need to seriously consider adding veteran help to their defensive line.
While the 49ers' defensive front, a unit that recorded an NFL-low 20 sacks last season, failed to record a sack in Week 1 against the Los Angeles Rams, it recorded four against the Dolphins. It's an encouraging sign that things may be trending upward for the defensive line.
More info on: Alfred Collins, Sam Okuayinonu, James Thompson, Mykel Williams
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