Alright, so while the Emerald City is still buzzing from that wild 9-9 final score our Seahawks pulled off against the Chiefs , a bizarre one, but hey, we fought hard! , let’s talk about our rivals down south. The 49ers just dropped their final 53-man roster, and believe me, it’s not exactly sunshine and rainbows for them. Defensive end Mykel Williams is officially heading to the reserve/PUP list, meaning he’s out for at least the first four games of the season. He’s still recovering from that torn ACL he suffered last year. Losing a pass rusher of his caliber, especially against the kind of offenses you face in the NFC West, is a massive blow right out of the gate.
Key Players Sidelined Before Week 1 Even Hits
It’s not just Williams either, which makes you wonder what kind of health issues they are battling. Running back Isaac Guerendo is also staying on the physically unable to perform list as the regular season kicks off. That’s another piece of their offensive depth chart that won’t be contributing in the crucial early weeks. Then you’ve got wide receiver Christian Kirk and offensive lineman Austen Pleasants, both hitting injured reserve with a designation to return. Now, that “designation to return” sounds optimistic, right? But it still means they are sidelined for a significant chunk of time. For a team with their aspirations, having a starting-caliber receiver and an important lineman out from the jump has to sting. It forces other guys to step up faster than planned, and that’s always a gamble.
Offensive Line Depth Is GONE, Just Like That
But the hits keep coming, especially for their offensive line. Offensive linemen Brett Toth and Nick Zakelj are *also* on injured reserve, but for them, there’s absolutely no eligibility to return this season. Seriously? That’s two more O-linemen completely out of the picture. Losing four offensive linemen to IR or PUP, with two of them gone for the entire year, is a monumental depth issue for any team, let alone one expecting to contend. How do you protect your quarterback or run the ball effectively when your depth is gutted like that before you even play a meaningful snap? Beyond these significant injuries, they also cut a huge number of players to get their roster down to 53. They waived or released a bunch of defensive backs, defensive linemen, running backs, wide receivers, linebackers, and more offensive linemen, including names like Eli Apple and Khalil Herbert. It really highlights the hard decisions they had to make, exacerbated by all these early injuries.
This is a tough, tough start for our rivals. With Mykel Williams out for four games and so many other key guys on IR, their depth is going to be tested big-time from day one. The stakes are huge for them; they have to find answers for these roster holes and keep their season on track despite the health setbacks. We’ll be watching closely to see how they try to piece it all together, but it definitely feels like they’re walking into Week 1 already playing from behind.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Pro Football Talk.
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