The good news for the San Francisco 49ers heading into Sunday’s Week 11 matchup with the division rival Arizona Cardinals is that they’ll get back quarterback Brock Purdy and receiver Ricky Pearsall.
The bad news is the team may be without arguably its top remaining defensive star.
With All-Pro defensive end Nick Bosa and Pro Bowl linebacker Fred Warner out with season-ending injuries, $92 million cornerback Deommodore Lenoir may just be the best defender left on San Francisco’s roster.
But after the team’s latest roster move — elevating cornerback Eli Apple from the practice squad to the 53-man roster — things aren’t looking so promising for Lenoir to play on Sunday.
Injuries Continue to Pile Up for San Francisco
Head coach Kyle Shanahan informed reporters that Lenoir was added to the injury report on Friday with a calf issue, making him questionable for Week 11.
The 26-year-old CB suffered the injury during Thursday’s practice, leading to him experiencing some tightness after on-field drills were done.
“[He] tried to go today, didn’t,” Shanahan told reporters. “We’ll get an MRI here. Didn’t think it was that serious. Did it jogging from a drill. Just some tightness. So we’ll find more when we get an MRI.”
Apple’s elevation from the practice squad is likely a sign Lenoir can’t go. Darrell Luter, who’s played 73 coverage snaps this season, logging 15 tackles and a tackle for loss while allowing 5 catches on 9 targets for 89 yards, will likely fill his spot behind Renardo Green and Upton Stout.
“He’s been better in practice than he’s ever been before,” Shanahan added. “So if (he starts), we’ve got a lot of confidence in him.”
Lenoir is the latest in a long list of injured 49ers layers this season, including Bosa, Warner, 2025 first-round edge-rusher Mykel Williams, defensive ends Yetur Gross-Matos and Tarron Johnson, and cornerbacks Jakob Robinson and Tre Tomlinson.
Injuries have ravaged the team on the offensive side of the ball as well.
Purdy missed 8 of the 49ers’ first 10 games, Pearsall missed 6, tight end George Kittle missed 5, WR Jauan Jennings missed 2, offensive tackle Spencer Burford missed 6, and guard Ben Bartsch missed 7.
49ers Make Notable Roster Move at QB
GettySan Francisco 49ers QB Brock Purdy is set to return from a turf toe injury
Further solidifying the 49ers’ belief that Purdy’s return is permanent (he returned in Week 4 only to reaggravate his turf toe injury and miss the next 6 games), the team released backup QB Adrian Martinez.
“He’s not limited at all,” Shanahan told KNBR about Purdy’s status. “He had a full practice (Thursday). I thought he was real close last week. Last week, we were considering it, even getting him up at least to be a backup and stuff, but we thought it would help him one more week.
“… I think he made it a pretty easy decision for us. So, no point in messing around. It’s time to go.”
Martinez signed with the team’s practice squad back in late August after spending the 2024 season on the New York Jets practice squad.
The 25-year-old Kansas State alum played one offensive snap this season in relief of Mac Jones.
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