Word on Sunday morning was that wide receiver Deebo Samuel would be in the 49ers lineup against the Cardinals and the team made it official on Sunday afternoon.
Samuel missed practice this week with rib and knee injuries, but he got the green light to play in the matchup of NFC West teams. The 49ers are also getting Brandon Aiyuk back from a shoulder injury, but will be missing Jauan Jennings in their receiving corps.
Quarterback Brandon Allen, guard Nick Zakelj, defensive tackle Kalia Davis, linebacker Jalen Graham, running back Elijah Mitchell, and cornerback Anthony Brown are also inactive on Sunday.
Tight end Elijah Higgins, running back Keaontay Ingram, defensive lineman Jonathan Ledbetter, offensive lineman Ilm Manning, offensive lineman Carter O’Donnell, cornerback Starling Thomas, and linebacker Josh Woods will not play for the Cardinals.
49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel did not practice at all this week, but it doesn’t look like that will keep him from playing against the Cardinals.
According to multiple reports, Samuel will be active for Sunday’s game at Levi’s Stadium. Samuel had been listed as questionable because of rib and knee injuries.
The 49ers will also be getting Brandon Aiyuk back in the receiving corps. Aiyuk did not play in Week Three because of a shoulder injury, but he had no injury designation on the final injury report of the week.
Jauan Jennings is expected to miss the game with a shin injury. The 49ers elevated Willie Snead from the practice squad to fill out the receiver group.
Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray is eligible to come off the physically unable to perform list on Monday, but a report on Saturday says that won’t be happening.
Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that Murray will not come off the list this week. Schefter adds that Murray, who is recovering from a torn ACL on Dec. 12, is thought to be weeks away from being ready to play.
Joshua Dobbs is starting at quarterback for Arizona and he said this week that he’s only focused on the things he can control when asked about Murray’s potential return.
General Manager Monti Ossenfort told Arizona Sports on Friday that the plan is for Murray to play when he is ready.
“Kyler is progressing physically,” Ossenfort said. “He is continuing to prepare himself mentally, and we’re getting closer to that time when he’s going to be able to go out there and join his teammates in practice. When he’s ready to do that, we won’t hesitate to do that. I would say . . . we can see a light where we’re heading. I don’t think we’re quite ready to announce when that’s going to be, but we are very pleased with Kyler’s progress, where he’s going right now.”
Veteran wideout Willie Snead may be set for his first appearance of the 2023 season.
The 49ers elevated Snead from the practice squad for Sunday’s game against the Cardinals. The Niners listed Jauan Jennings as doubtful and Deebo Samuel as questionable to play this weekend, so they’re likely to be down at least one of their usual receivers against Arizona.
Snead appeared in four games for the Niners last season. He has 279 catches for 3,431 yards and 16 touchdowns in 99 career games for the Saints, Ravens, Panthers, and Raiders.
The 49ers also elevated defensive back Kendall Sheffield. Both players will revert back to the practice squad after the game.
After not playing at all in Week 2, 49ers running back Elijah Mitchell had 14 touches in a short-week win over the Giants.
Mitchell might miss Sunday’s game against the Cardinals with a knee injury.
Officially questionable, Mitchell injured his knee in practice on Thursday. Coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters on Friday that it happened at the end of the the session.
“His knee, got tripped up and dinged his knee,” Shanahan said.
Shanahan added that he wasn’t sure whether it’s a sprain or a bruise.
A sixth-round pick in 2021, Mitchell rushed for 963 yards in only 11 games as a rookie. Last year, he was eclipsed by the arrival of Christian McCaffrey via trade.
Mitchell is currently the second-string tailback behind the 2022 comeback player of the year, and potential 2023 MVP. Jordan Mason and Tyrion Davis-Price round out the depth chart.
The fourth week of the 2023 NFL season kicked off on Thursday with a win by the Lions and it continues with 14 more games on Sunday, which means that the 28 teams in those games submitted their final injury reports of the week on Friday.
The Seahawks and Giants play on Monday and their final injury reports will be released on Saturday.
Falcons at Jaguars (in London)
RB Cordarrelle Patterson (thigh) is questionable to make his regular season debut for the Falcons. WR Josh Ali (ankle) is out.
Jaguars WR Zay Jones (knee), LB Devin Lloyd (thumb), and DB Antonio Johnson (hamstring) are out. T Anton Harrison (ankle), DL Foley Fatukasi (shoulder), and WR Jamal Agnew (quad) are listed as questionable.
Dolphins at Bills
Dolphins EDGE Jaelan Phillips (oblique) is out. RB Salvon Ahmed (groin), T Terron Armstead (back, ankle, knee), S DeShon Elliott (ankle, groin), and C Connor Williams (groin) were designated as questionable.
S Jordan Poyer (knee) will not play for the Bills.
Broncos at Bears
LB Frank Clark (hip), LB Josey Jewell (hip), and DT Mike Purcell (ribs) are out for the Broncos while S Justin Simmons (hip) is questionable to play.
S Eddie Jackson (foot) and CB Jaylon Johnson (hamstring) won’t play for the Bears. RB Travis Homer (ankle) is questionable.
Ravens at Browns
Ravens WR Rashod Bateman (hamstring) and WR Odell Beckham Jr. (ankle) will miss Sunday’s game. CB Marlon Humphrey (foot), EDGE Odafe Oweh (ankle), and EDGE David Ojabo (ankle/knee) are also out while T Ronnie Stanley (knee) is doubtful. RB Justice Hill (toe), S Kyle Hamilton (back), C Tyler Linderbaum (ankle) and S Marcus Williams (pectoral) make up the questionable group.
QB Deshaun Watson (shoulder) is listed as questionable after a week of limited practices, but the rest of the Browns are good to go.
Steelers at Texans
The Steelers ruled out G James Daniels (groin) and P Pressley Harvin (right hamstring).
T Laremy Tunsil (knee), G/T Josh Jones (hand), LB Denzel Perryman (hand, wrist), and CB Tavierre Thomas (hand) are all out for the Texans. C Michael Dieter (concussion) is their only questionable player.
Vikings at Panthers
C Garrett Bradbury (back) and DE Marcus Davenport (ankle) are listed as questionable for the Vikings. S Lewis Cine (hamstring) is the only player ruled out.
The Panthers will have QB Bryce Young (ankle) back in the lineup. RB Miles Sanders (groin) is listed as questionable along with LB Frankie Luvu (hip) and WR Jonathan Mingo (concussion).
Rams at Colts
TE Tyler Higbee (Achilles), T Alaric Jackson (hamstring), S John Johnson (face), and WR Ben Skowronek (Achilles) are the Rams’ questionable players.
Colts QB Anthony Richardson (concussion) is good to go, but C Ryan Kelly (concussion) and T Bernhard Raimann (concussion) are not going to play. DT DeForest Buckner (groin, back), QB Sam Ehlinger (right shoulder), and G Quenton Nelson (toe) are all listed as questionable.
Buccaneers at Saints
CB Carlton Davis (toe) could return for the Bucs after being listed as questionable, but CB Jamel Dean (neck/shoulder), DL Calijah Kancey (calf), CB Derrick Pitts (hamstring), and LB SirVocea Dennis (hamstring) are all out. DT Vita Vea (pectoral) and linebacker Devin White (foot) are also questionable.
Saints QB Derek Carr (right shoulder) is listed as questionable after returning to practice on Friday.
Commanders at Eagles
RB Chris Rodriguez (illness) is out for the Commanders and S Percy Butler (foot) is listed as questionable.
The Eagles ruled out S Sydney Brown (hamstring) and WR Quez Watkins (hamstring). S Justin Evans (neck) is considered questionable.
Bengals at Titans
QB Joe Burrow (calf) will start for the Bengals. TE Irv Smith (hamstring) is out and LB Akeem Davis-Gaither (knee) is questionable.
WR Treylon Burks (knee), G Peter Skoronski (abdomen), CB Elijah Molden (hamstring), and LB Luke Gifford (hamstring) are out for the Titans.
Raiders at Chargers
QB Jimmy Garoppolo (concussion) and EDGE Maxx Crosby (knee) headline the Raiders report. Both are listed as questionable along with CB Nate Hobbs (ankle), S Roderic Teamer (Achilles), and DE Malcolm Koonce (groin). LB Curtis Bolton (knee) is out.
The Chargers are set to play without RB Austin Ekeler (ankle) and Derwin James (hamstring) after listing them as doubtful. EDGE Joey Bosa (hamstring, toe) and S Alohi Gilman (heel) drew questionable tags. CB Deane Leonard (hamstring) is doubtful while C Corey Linsley (illness) and S JT Woods (illness) were ruled out.
Patriots at Cowboys
DT Christian Barmore (knee), DT Davon Godchaux (ankle), CB Jonathan Jones (ankle), G Cole Strange (knee), and CB Shaun Wade (shoulder) are questionable for the Patriots.
Cowboys G Zack Martin (ankle) and C Tyler Biadasz (hamstring) are questionable to play, but T Tyron Smith (knee) has been ruled out. TE Peyton Hendershot (ankle) is also questionable.
Cardinals at 49ers
DE Jonathan Ledbetter (finger) and LB Josh Woods (ankle) are out for the Cardinals. LB Krys Barnes (finger), WR Marquise Brown (thumb), RB Keaontay Ingram (neck), and T Paris Johnson (ankle) make up their questionable group.
WR Brandon Aiyuk (shoulder) is set to play for the 49ers, but WR Deebo Samuel (rib, knee) is questionable and WR Jauan Jennings (knee) is doubtful. RB Elijah Mitchell (knee), LB Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles (ankle), and LB Dre Greenlaw (ankle) are also in the questionable group.
Chiefs at Jets
If Taylor Swift and Aaron Rodgers are at Sunday night’s game, they won’t be seeing Chiefs LB Nick Bolton (ankle) or CB Jaylen Warren (shoulder).
The Jets ruled out S Tony Adams (hamstring) and G Wes Schweitzer (concussion).
The 49ers are set to have wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk back in the lineup this weekend.
Aiyuk missed last Thursday’s win over the Giants with a shoulder injury, but he has been practicing all week and he did not receive an injury designation for Sunday’s game against the Cardinals. His return is well-timed because the 49ers may be without a couple of other wideouts.
Jauan Jennings is considered doubtful to play because of a knee injury and Deebo Samuel is listed as questionable with rib and knee injuries. Wide receivers Chris Conley and Willie Snead could be elevated from the practice squad.
Running back Elijah Mitchell (knee), linebacker Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles (ankle), and linebacker Dre Greenlaw (ankle) have been listed as questionable.
Wide receivers Deebo Samuel and Jauan Jennings remained out of practice Thursday, and coach Kyle Shanahan said the 49ers will list both as questionable on Friday’s status report.
"[Brandon] Aiyuk was out there at practice today, but Deebo and Jauan weren’t able to practice, and they’ll be questionable for the game,” Shanahan said on KNBR on Thursday, via David Bonilla of 49erswebzone.com. “I know we don’t do that yet, but we’ll see how they go tomorrow. But hopefully, they can get out tomorrow and give them a chance for Sunday.”
Samuel has rib and knee injuries and Jennings is working through a shin injury.
Aiyuk (shoulder) has had limited practices this week after missing last week’s game against the Giants.
The 49ers’ only healthy wide receivers are rookie Ronnie Bell and Ray-Ray McCloud.
Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray is eligible to come off the physically unable to perform list after this Sunday’s game against the 49ers, but the team’s current starter isn’t thinking about what might happen on that front.
Joshua Dobbs has started the first three games of the season and is coming off a pair of strong performances that include last Sunday’s win over the Cowboys, but he knows that he was acquired just before the start of the season because the Cardinals needed someone to stand in for Murray. That means he will likely be pushed out of the lineup at some point, but there’s not much reason to fret about it with Murray still on the PUP list and needing practice time before any thought of putting him into game action.
“I stay true to me,” Dobbs said, via the team’s website. “I’m excited to see Kyler come back. I have watched his game from afar for a while. It’s cool to meet him and be in the same room as him and be around him. When [the return] happens, I control what I can control and absorb whatever role that puts me in and go from there. It’ll be OK. I’ll manage it, he’ll manage it, we’ll be fine.”
Whatever the future holds in Arizona, Dobbs can help himself by continuing to play well in the coming weeks. Teams are always looking for quarterbacks and showing he can do the job should serve Dobbs well as he looks for work in the future.
49ers defensive end Nick Bosa didn’t join the team for the preseason because he was looking for a contract extension that finally came just before the start of the regular season, so he’s been using the last few weeks to fully return to football shape.
Bosa’s percentage of defensive snaps has gone up since he played just over half the snaps in the opener and he said this week that he feels like his body has gotten to where it needs to be heading into this weekend’s game against the Cardinals.
“I think getting through the Thursday for me was big,” Bosa said, via 49ersWebzone.com. “Just getting thrown right into football, I was feeling it. But getting through that, being able to finish out Week Three, I think my body’s fully adapted to football now, and it’s going to be good from here.”
Bosa had his first sack of the season in last Thursday’s win over the Giants and the 49ers will be looking for a lot more of them now that Bosa feels back into the groove.