The San Francisco 49ers on Tuesday went to the free agent pool in search for answers to a pair of injuries their roster sustained in the first week of the season. They hosted five players, including three tight ends and two defensive tackles, for tryouts Tuesday according to the NFL's transaction wire.
DT Alfred Collins suffered a season-ending knee injury in practice leading up to San Francisco's season opener. TE Jake Tonges also suffered a knee injury that may cost him a significant amount of time during the 49ers win over the Los Angeles Rams.
San Francisco on Tuesday made a roster move to promote TE Brayden Willis to their active roster and sign DT McKinnley Jackson to their practice squad. They have one open practice squad spot which could
go to one of the five players they tried out Tuesday.
Among the players trying out were TEs Lawrence Cager, Tanner Conner and Jack Stoll. They also worked out DTs Daniel Ekuale and Larry Ogunjobi.
Ogunjuobi is the most interesting name in this group. The 32-year-old has played in 134 games with 108 starts across a nine-year NFL career. He spent last season with the Buffalo Bills where he played in 10 games and didn't register at least 1.0 sacks for the first time in his career. He has 27.5 career sacks and 60 tackles for loss. With thin numbers on the interior of their defensive line, a veteran like Ogunjobi who can step in and play right away would be helpful.
Ekuale also has a little NFL experience with 64 games and 21 starts during a six-year career. He played in seven games for the Pittsburgh Steelers a season ago and has 6.0 sacks and eight tackles for loss as a pro.
None of the TE options they tried out are particularly inspiring. Cager is 29 and hasn't played substantial snaps in the NFL since the 2023 season when he played in 11 games for the New York Giants. He has 19 catches and 189 yards with two touchdowns in 22 games for his career.
Conner is 28 and has 33 games of NFL experience. Last year with the Miami Dolphins he caught nine balls for 91 yards to give himself 12 catches for 107 yards in his four-year career.
Perhaps the most interesting name among the TEs is Stoll, who has played in 76 games with 32 starts in five years. He has 28 career catches for 239 yards and one touchdown.
The 49ers have an open practice squad spot where they could backfill the spot vacated by Willis, or they could bring in a player on the defensive line to give themselves some internal depth at a thin position made thinner by the Collins injury. Expect continued roster maneuvering for San Francisco now that they're home and navigating a handful of injury moves.
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This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: Former Browns 3rd-round pick among 5 players 49ers hosted for tryout
