The good: The San Francisco 49ers had a dominant 35-13 victory over the Miami Dolphins on Sunday.
The bad: They lost another wide receiver to injury. Demarcus Robinson was carted off with what Kyle Shanahan says is a high-ankle sprain. Mike Evans also left due to a hip issue, but Shanahan didn’t seem too concerned.
Shanahan says they are going to look into signing a wide receiver this week. And no, Brandon Aiyuk is not a possibility; Shanahan was very quick to shoot that down.
Considering Robinson’s
injury and Mike Evans’ hip thing (which we won’t know about until later Monday), what do the 49ers have?
Their current rostered wide receivers are as follows:
- Jacob Cowing
- Mike Evans
- KhaDarel Hodge
- Deebo Samuel
- Jordan Watkins
They have both Robinson and De’Zhaun Stribling out with injuries.
Of those names left, we can probably guess both Cowing and Watkins might have expanded roles in Week 3 against the Arizona Cardinals. Watkins was a healthy scratch against Miami, and it’s fair to think that won’t be the case when the Cardinals roll around. He and Hodge both went through training camp and know the offense, meaning it’s easier to game plan for. In turn, the 49ers will be needing someone for depth and possible special teams help—but might not suit up on game day.
On the practice squad, the 49ers have Wesley Grimes and Will Pauling. Both are rookies. Obviously, they can call up either of them. Between those two, Pauling had a bit more chatter during training camp. The question is whether they are ready for the NFL game, and only the coaching staff knows that. Again, if either of them were to be called up to the main roster, the chances of seeing anything from them are small.
So that’s what might be the free agent they bring in. Sure, there are big names like Tyreek Hill, Darius Slayton, Brandin Cooks, and JuJu Smith-Schuster, but that’s a bit too expensive given the 49ers’ predicament.
If they wanted to go a veteran route and get someone who wouldn’t break the bank, Ray-Ray McCloud is available. Don’t get too excited; McCloud was placed on IR with the Chicago Bears before the season began and was released with an injury settlement.
The big question is if he’d be healthy enough to come back to the 49ers. I mention McCloud simply because of his familiarity with Shanahan’s offense—but this situation is almost certain not to happen. He could fill the role left by Robinson, as well as be a backup punt returner in case Cowing goes down—but all of that depends on whether he’s healthy. It also takes away development from Watkins, who the 49ers might want to see what they have with a small sample size/window available.
The 49ers are not in the position to spend a ton of money on a veteran wide receiver. Should they lose Mike Evans, then that’s the time to look at the big-hitters. For now, they need to add some depth while some other guys get a bit more of a role.
We don’t know the extent of Robinson’s injury, or even when Stribling will be back (they said 10 weeks, but you never know); that suggests they aren’t targeting a big name. If you have ideas for who they should bring in, Spotrac has a good list of available wide receivers. Keep in mind, some of these names are retired, like DeAndre Hopkins—he ain’t coming.
Who would you bring in for depth?
