The San Francisco 49ers are operating with an early 2026 NFL Injury pileup. Wide receiver Mike Evans added to the growing list Sunday during the Arizona Cardinals game. Now general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan are calling on reinforcements via Matthew Judon.
SF added the veteran edge rusher Monday amid its barrage of injuries, with ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler outlining the plan.
“The 49ers are signing veteran pass rusher Matt Judon to the practice squad with early chance for elevation, per sources. Judon has 72 career sacks and four Pro Bowls,” Fowler posted on the social media website X, formerly Twitter.
Evans' in-game departure briefly hurt the 49ers offense. But Judon heads to an already ravaged defensive group. San Francisco is dealing with edge rusher Nick Bosa being banged up early. Fellow edge rush defender Mykel Williams is already out too. Even on the backend star cornerback Deommodore Lenoir needed to leave after colliding with linebacker teammate Fred Warner inside Levi's Stadium.
But the 49ers also lost star left tackle Trent Williams during the game. Williams followed out Lenoir with a possible head injury, which occurred during a late Christian McCaffrey touchdown run.
The depleted 49ers are still 3-0 on the season, adding the 36-30 Sunday win as their latest victory. San Francisco previously defeated division rival and preseason Super Bowl favorite the Los Angeles Rams, then took down the Miami Dolphins in one-sided fashion. But now Judon adds some needed depth and relief for a team dealing with the injury bug before October arrives.