The 49ers could have Nick Bosa back after their bye week. There is a “high level of optimism” that the star edge rusher will be able to return against the Raiders in Week 9, per CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz.
Bosa, 29, as been sidelined since suffering a calf injury in Week 2. Two weeks ago, he was optimistic about playing against the Commanders and Falcons, but experienced some soreness the next day. That made the team more cautious, head coach Kyle Shanahan said (via Matt Barrows of The Athletic), leading them to rule Bosa out of Sunday’s game in Atlanta.
The 49ers did explore some edge-rushing depth this week with a workout for former Falcons third-rounder Bralen Trice, per ESPN’s Nick Wagoner. The 25-year-old was waived on Tuesday after just four appearances this year, his first regular-season action in his career. He played 76 snaps on defense with two tackles and one pass defended.
San Francisco will also be without wide receivers Mike Evans and Deebo Samuel against the Falcons. Evans was questionable with an Achilles issue going into last week’s matchup against the Commanders and seemed to aggravate the injury during the game. The 6-foot-5, 231-pound wideout leads the team with 420 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Samuel is now set to miss his second straight game with a hamstring injury. Christian Kirk is listed as questionable but Shanahan was positive about his status, which could be crucial with Evans and Samuel sidelined.