CINCINNATI — Joe Staley, the anchor of the 49ers' offensive line, broke his left fibula during Sunday's 41-17 win over the Bengals.

Staley will not be placed on season-ending injured reserve, and he could return in fewer than eight weeks.

#49ers Joe Staley has a broken fibula and it could be out around 8 weeks. Hopefully not an IR candidate

— Jennifer Lee Chan (@jenniferleechan) September 15, 2019

In fact, Staley told NBC Sports Bay Area's Matt Maiocco that he likely will be out six to eight weeks.

Joe Staley says he’ll likely be out 6 to 8 weeks with a broken leg fibula.

— Matt Maiocco (@MaioccoNBCS) September 15, 2019

Late in the third quarter, Staley went down on the field, and trainers attended to the stalwart left tackle close to the Bengals' bench. Maiocco reported that Staley appeared to be injured in a tangle-up with 49ers teammate Raheem Mostert. 

On the play in which Joe Staley got injured, he was blocking for Raheem Mostert. Mostert’s leg hit Staley’s left leg and bent it back into Staley’s right leg.

— Matt Maiocco (@MaioccoNBCS) September 15, 2019

Once Staley stood up after the play, he walked a few steps to the Bengals' sideline, putting very little weight on his left foot, and he was carted to the 49ers' locker room a few moments later.

Staley largely was injury free in his 12 previous NFL seasons, and he has mentioned that as long as he can play and remains healthy, he will keep suiting up for the 49ers. The front office also has vowed to keep Staley on the team for his entire NFL career.

Justin Skule, the 49ers' swing tackle, replaced Staley for the remainder of the game.

Eight days before the NFL trade deadline, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan said Monday that he does not feel as much urgency to add a veteran receiver in the middle of the season than in his previous two. 

“I think less (urgency) than we’ve had in the last couple of years because I do see that there are guys in our building that I do think the answers are here,” Shanahan told reporters Monday in Santa Clara, amid reports that the 49ers are in the market to add a wide receiver.

The 49ers played Sunday without rookie receiver Deebo Samuel, who injured his groin a week earlier against the Los Angeles Rams. Marquise Goodwin played just seven snaps before leaving with an injury Sunday. He was evaluated for a concussion but was cleared. Goodwin is not in the NFL’s concussion protocol, Shanahan said.

San Francisco also hopes to get Trent Taylor and rookie Jalen Hurd back later in the season. Both players are on injured reserve. They are eligible to return after sitting out eight games from the time they went on IR.

“It was tough not having Deebo last week and Marquise being a little bit banged up, we’ll get both of those two back,” Shanahan said. “The guys we have I still think can continue to get better. We’re still holding out hopes, too, for Jalen and Trent Taylor that they can heal up and hopefully return later this year.

“We’re always looking to improve, but I do like the guys we have here.”

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Tight end George Kittle is the 49ers' top pass-catcher with 34 receptions for 376 yards and one touchdown. Samuel leads the wideouts in receptions with 15 catches for 168 yards, while Goodwin has 11 catches for 181 yards. Samuel and Goodwin have one TD apiece. Kendrick Bourne had his best game of the season on Sunday with three catches for 69 yards in the 49ers' 9-0 victory over Washington.

Dante Pettis, a second-round pick in 2018, has not produced up to expectations. He has nine catches for 83 yards and one touchdown.

The NFL is a business, and often times that leads to hurt feelings.

Teams draft players, run them into the ground on the cheap and then decided to either trade them, cut them or not re-sign them when the time comes. Being used breeds animosity, and a lack of loyalty can burn bridges built through years of trust. 

But when it comes to Frank Gore and the 49ers, no such animosity exists.

The 49ers drafted Gore out of Miami with a third-round pick of the 2005 NFL Draft. Gore played 10 seasons in the Bay Area, rushing for 11,073 yards and 63 touchdowns. After the 2014 season, Gore signed a three-year contract with the Colts after the 49ers elected not to offer him a long-term deal.

Gore has gone from the Colts to the Dolphins and now finds himself with the Bills, but he still keeps in touch with the organization that gave him his first shot. 

“I still talk to Jed (York), talk to Paraag (Marathe), I still talk to Scot McCloughan," Gore told KNBR's Al Sacco. "I played 10 years there. I was blessed to play 10, and I know the business of it but I respect Jed. He let his guys make the decision on whether to bring me back and I respect it. Like I said, his mom calls me, his dad texts me here and there. It’s like a family over there.”

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The veteran running back remains thankful the 49ers took a chance on him coming out of colllege.

“It’s everything. It was the first given opportunity to be able to play this game at the highest level," Gore told KNBR. "Even though I was coming off two ACLs they still took a chance and they got beat up by taking me with the first pick in the third round.”

Gore recently eclipsed the 15,000-yard mark for his career. He has said he wants to retire as a member of the 49ers when the time comes.

But for now, Gore plans to keep on racking up the yards for the Bills, or whoever else wants him toting the rock.